


new heroes

by cherryongie



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Attempt at a Slow Burn, Bottom Lee Taeyong, Eventual Smut, JaeYong - Freeform, Lee Taeyong & Nakamoto Yuta Are Best Friends, M/M, Minor Character Death, Minor Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Seo Youngho | Johnny, Minor Ji Hansol/Nakamoto Yuta, Minor Lee Taeyong/Nakamoto Yuta, One-sided Nakamoto Yuta/Lee Taeyong, Slow Burn, Superheroes, Top Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun, other relationships are mentioned - Freeform, there will be smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-20
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-04-25 01:37:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 36,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14368101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryongie/pseuds/cherryongie
Summary: being good all the time is hard. taeyong learns this the hard way.— named after ten's "new heroes" —





	1. preface

**Author's Note:**

> Each member's ages have been altered to fit the story. Heights haven't been altered, and hair colours are pretty generic.  
> Here are the members' ages below.  
> \- Taeyong: 17 turning 18  
> \- Jaehyun: 17  
> \- Yuta: 17 turning 18  
> \- Johnny: 18  
> \- Hansol: 17 turning 18  
> \- Ten: 17  
> Also, at the beginning of the chapter,it will say who's POV the chapter is. If there is no name, that means the chapter is told in third person. Enjoy my first Jaeyong story!  
> This story also takes place in a Sydney-like Seoul during June, 2031.  
> NAMED AFTER TEN’S “NEW HEROES”

**Taeyong**

Most people like to believe that tragedy won't happen to them. When a car collided with a tree and a life is lost, most people will look at the screen of their television where the scene is being broadcasted on the news, they think to themselves—"That won't happen to me."

Tragedy happens to everyone, one way or another. No matter how big or small, tragedy will still happen to people, innocent or not.

And it is my job as a hero to protect the innocent from those who do wrong.

At my age, I should be worrying about trying to get into the university I want, or graduating with high scores in my final exams, or actually trying to keep my life together—yet here I am, a eighteen-year-old high school student with telekinesis powers dressing up in a costume and stopping petty criminals from hurting innocents.

I don't know how or when it started, it just happened. 

In today's society, there are some people born with powers. It's extremely rare, though, and no one knows how or why they are born with powers. There's about eight people recorded to have powers in the world, and that's not including me. We would rather stay low and out of the limelight.

I know of one other person who is like me. He was captured by society and tested on for the reasoning of his powers. Once he broke out of the laboratory, he made an international announcement to every one of our kind to stay hidden, stay away and keep our powers undiscovered by the public, for if society were to discover our powers, the same thing that happened to him would happen to us.

Then he went on a rampage through New York and killed many people. I don't know the exact number, but I do know he was taken down and killed. This was before I knew of my powers.

I discovered my telekinetic powers when I was young. I was a stupid nine-year-old, mucking about in the park with my friend, Nakamoto Yuta, and we were climbing a massive tree. He had lost his footing and fallen. I had reached out to him, wanting to save him, and suddenly, his body enveloped in a warm red glow and he hovered inches above the ground.

It kind of shocked us both. And we went home to do our research. There's no name for people like me—just "abnormal people", or "AB" for short. I was terrified, to be perfectly honest. What if I was taken away like that American AB was, and tested on?

Yuta consoled me, and promised me he would not tell a soul. He also promised to stay by my side.

Yuta was the only person who knows my secret. He and I still continue to be best friends, even now. He never broke his promises.

I became a hero by accident. It was a cold day in winter during my last year of junior high, the snowflakes were slowly drifting down from the grey sky, the crisp wind slicing through my thin school jacket. I was sick, so I had worn a black dust-mask over my nose and mouth. It concealed my face. I had passed an alleyway, and I heard scuffling and groans of pain. The sounds of knuckles colliding with flesh were loud, and it was apparent that someone was being beaten in that dark alleyway.

I didn't want to turn and look, but I did anyway. Two men had ganged up on a young male, pinning the poor boy to the stone ground, punching, kicking and swearing at him. What was worse was that they began to dip their hands below the waistband of his jeans.

I had stupidly run towards them, throwing my bag off my back behind me. I didn't know what the hell I was doing—but as I pushed one guy off the boy, my fingertips glowed red and the brute flew back, his body enveloped in the glowing red. I had squeezed my fingers into a fist and brought my hand down, slamming his body into the ground.

His accomplice was shocked, and he had staggered away from me, fear and wonder dancing in his eyes. I pointed to him, the soft red glow engulf his body, before I flicked my wrist, and he too, flew back.

My heart was pounding wildly in my chest—from fear, adrenaline and exhilaration. I momentarily had forgotten about the boy on the floor. I had rushed to his side, checking if he was okay. He was very shaken up, but he was able to talk to me.

I had called the police and the ambulance, and whilst they were on their way, the boy introduced himself to me. His name was Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul (or Ten, for short) and he was a Thai exchange student. Once I had him talking, he wouldn't stop. That was good, at least it took his mind off what just happened and his injuries.

When the wailing sirens and red lights finally appeared, he had grabbed my arm and pulled me close.

"Your secret is safe with me."

That made two people who knew. I had run off before the police and paramedics could reach Ten, I knew I could trust him, I mean, I had just saved his life. But I wasn't going to risk it with the officials. I guess I was lucky I was wearing my face mask, because Ten and the thugs never really saw my face, or knew my name. I was safe.

But saving the male made my heart race and pride swell in my chest. I wanted to save more people, stop criminals from hurting innocent people like Ten—so I became a hero.

I made myself an outfit (it consisted of red spandex pants and a denim sleeveless button up, along with a black breathable leather mask), and I made a name for myself—I was Limitless. 

The hero with telekinetic powers. 


	2. nobody knows how I got here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You good?" I ask, hiding a snicker behind my hand. He shoots me a glare, reaching out and slapping my arm. 
> 
> "Fuck off," he hisses, his voice muffled by his scarf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so, this chapter is a bit boring cause I had to introduce the characters and such, so bare with me, ok?

**Taeyong**

The policeman slams the criminal against the car bonnet, roughly cuffing hand cuffs around his wrists. His teeth are grit, and he curses at me all the while.

All I did was smirk behind my mask, sitting sassily on the bonnet of a nearby police car, one leg crossed over the other and my elbow resting on my knee, my chin in my hand. I wave my hand, a soft red glow emitting from my fingertips. The waistband of the criminal's pants shroud in the same red glow, dropping from around his hips to the ground.

He shrieks, his face burning as red as my telekinesis. The police officer stifles a laugh, pushing the pantsed criminal into the back of his car. He musters a weak glare to me, hands on his hips.

"Limitless, you aren't supposed to play with your prey," he teases, a grin tugging into his lips. I laugh, the sound muffled by my black mask.

"Too bad, Officer Kim," I tease back. He, Kim Heechul, and I have this kind of teasing chemistry with one another, and have since I first became Limitless. He doesn't know my identity, but he's trustworthy and funny.

Whatever it is, he makes me laugh so I value him and his services. He's also got the same justice moral as me. Which is also valued.

He snickers, taking his hat off to comb his fingers through his dirt brown hair. "You're so funny,"

"I know," I stand up on the bonnet, stretching my bare arms above my head. My denim collar scratches at my neck, and I sigh in relief at my joints popping. "Anyway, Officer, I'll be off."

He steps forwards with his hand outstretched to protest, but I just wink and wave, leaping off the car and using my telekinesis to lift my body into the air.

I loved flying, I felt lighter than a feather and it was such a beautiful feeling. The wind blowing through my hair, looking down at the people the size of ants below me. It was euphoric.

I arrive back at home—a small run-down apartment complex. I land on a small balcony that lay outside my bedroom, quickly pulling my door open and dashing inside. Once I was safely inside, I slide my curtains closed, drenching my tiny bedroom in darkness. A small crack of evening sunlight shines through the curtains, giving me enough light to change from my costume.

I tug my black mask from my face, running my fingers through my sweaty black hair. I style it to curl like a wave when I'm Limitless, scrubbing white hair dye into the tips to help conceal my identity. When I'm Taeyong, my hair is just a plain black—flattened and not styled.

I can use my powers to easily style my hair, it takes merely a few seconds as opposed to half an hour. It was hard work but hey nobody has figured out who I am so it's working. The dye is the hardest part though. I keep it with me so I can easily scrub it in—it's just simple hair chalk. Another positive with my powers is that if I focus hard enough, I can pull the dye from the strand of my hair. It's annoying and energy draining, but it gets the work done quicker and more efficient then if I were to just shower it out.

I feel something warm and wet trickling down my lip, and I freeze. I touch my fingers to my lip, and I stare down at the sticky red substance on my fingers.

"Shit!" I curse, the realisation finally smacking me in the face. I run to the bathroom, one hand pressed to my nose to stop the steady flow of blood, my other hand fumbling about the open cabinet for tissues. I curse lowly to myself as I shove the white tissues to my bloody nose, the rose colour drenching the soft thin paper.

There was one drawback with my powers, however. Whenever I overexert myself, or I overuse my powers, it causes me to either hack up blood or experience a heavy nosebleed.

I breathe heavily through my mouth, the blood dribbling into my open mouth. The pain was incredible, it was like I had been heavily punched in the nose. I grit my teeth in pain, using one bloody and trembling hand to undo the buttons of my sleeveless denim vest. My fingers left bloody splotches along the scratchy denim, but at this point in time, I didn't care.

It hurt so badly. Tears swim in my eyes, my vision blurry as I stumble back to my room, weakly pushing the door closed behind me. I stumble to my bed, collapsing beside it.

The bedroom door slams open, but I pay no heed to it. Two arms wrap around my body, pressing a fresh clean cloth to my nose, absorbing the gushing blood. Soft whispers breathe into my ear, the gentle nothings calming my rapid heartbeat almost instantly.

My head lolls back onto a strong shoulder, my eyes dazed but trained on the roof.

"Thanks, Yuta," I pant, the agony in my nose slowly dissipating, transcending into a dull throb. He sighs, gently running his fingers through my sweaty locks.

"You over-worked yourself again," the Japanese boy criticises, poking at my bloodied cheek. I weakly swat his hand away, leaning forwards and wiping at my chin with the back of my hand. I hear him sigh, and he stands up behind me. His warm hand wraps around my bicep, gently pulling me to my feet. "You're such an idiot."

 

* * *

 

The the next couple of hours or so were spent helping me clean up the blood and scrub the blood stains from my costume. Yuta isn't good at washing, but he is good company. I got him to hang the saturated clothes on the clothes line on the roof while I sat and watched. By now, the waning moon was out, clouds missing from the dark blue sky. I checked the time on my wristwatch—8:06pm. The time had flown by.

I shift my long sleeve back over my wrist, cuddling myself to keep warm. I'm bundled up in a white woollen pullover and cotton pyjama pants, yet I was still shivering from the chilly night air as I watch him peg the sopping wet clothes up. He glances over at me, raising a brow. His body was quivering slightly, his fingers stained red from the cold.

"Why are you the one who's cold?" He inquires, his arms folding across his chest, his teeth chattering. "I'm the one who's hands are numb from the wet cloth and cold air." He rubs his hands together, gritting his teeth to cease the chattering.

I laugh, rubbing my nose. "Well, sorry. Did you fight some petty criminals today and almost die of blood loss through your nose? No, I don't think so." I snicker. He blows a raspberry.

"'Almost die', my ass," Yuta walks over to me, plonking his ass down on the concrete beside me. I punch his arm, causing the slightly taller male to dramatically wince and whine.

"Baby," I poke my tongue out at him.

The wind picks up, the cold fingers slicing at my tender flesh. I feel Yuta shudder beside me, and I feel the hairs on my arms prick up from the cold. I stand to my feet.

"Come on, _baka_ ," I tease, reaching over to him and grabbing his loose long sleeve in my hand. I tug on his sleeve, beckoning him to stand and to follow me inside. He ignored the insult I tossed at him in his mother tongue, instead opting to just elbow me in the ribs lightly.

"Jerk," he trails behind me down the empty hallway and down the cool stairway to our small apartment.

Once at the door, I unlocked it and pushed the creaky wooden door open. A warm cloud of air wafted over us, burning my icy cheeks. The hot air from the heater inside burnt my cold flesh, but it was a pleasant burn.

I let go of Yuta's sleeve, hearing him push the door closed with a loud creak of the hinges and click of the lock.

I take a glance around the small kitchen attached to a tiny living room—a small, tattered couch against one wall, the balcony adjacent, and a small television hanging on the wall above a compartment opposite the couch. A tiny coffee table was set in between the couch and the compartment full of DVDs and PS4 games and a console. Clothes were strewn across the couch and floor, empty food wrappers and rubbish scattered with crumbs across the coffee tanks.

The messy state of the room had my hands twitching in aggravation, but I was much too tired to bother cleaning up the mess. I run a hand through my damp and cold black locks, glancing back to Yuta who stood at the microwave, watching as the appliance heated up some left over Chinese takeaway we ordered a few nights ago.

The apartment was small—the entrance leading straight into the kitchen which then expanded into the messy living room. There was a single hallway that lead to a bathroom with a toilet and bath with a shower-head tap (that occasionally ran out of hot water), and two cramped bedrooms. One bedroom was at the end of the hall with only a window, and the other stood opposite the bathroom with its own small balcony beside the living room's balcony.

The one with the balcony was my room. The single bed was squashed right between the two walls with barely half a metre between the bed and the wall and balcony door (which opened outwards, thank god), floating bookshelves for my books at the foot of my bed, a small set of drawers beside the foot of the bed against the wall, a small desk beside the drawers, a bedside table next to the bed, another bookshelf beside that for treasured objects and a small wardrobe with sliding wooden doors beside the door to the bedroom.

It was cramped, but it was cozy. 

I walk into my bedroom, my dark gaze glancing over the tiny space to make sure everything was in its place. Once I knew that everything was where it should be, my shoulders sag as I heave a heavy sigh.

I drag myself over to my bed and collapse in a heap on top of it. My curtains to my balcony were closed, the dim moonlight and streetlights concealed by the dark fabric. My eyes were extremely heavy, and even though my stomach growled for food, I was much too tired to eat.

I pull back the black duvet of my bed, crawling beneath it and resting my head against the soft matching black pillow. I drag the heavy duvet over my body, covering my mouth with the edge.

A sleeping habit I've noticed that I have is that I always cover my mouth with either my hand, my plush toy, or the duvet, while I sleep. I don't understand why I do, but I do.

I pull my legs to my chest, my hand reaching out from under the covers to grab my pink bunny plush pillow. It was a gift from Yuta for my birthday a few years ago, and its comforting soft fabric and cuddliness helps lull me to sleep. Once my hand grasps the soft ear of the toy, I pull it under the covers and snuggle the large pillow plushie to my chest. I bring my knees up as I curl up into a protective ball, my eyelids finally drooping closed.

Light footsteps on my carpet alerted me that my roommate was approaching. I open my eyes, mustering the best glare I could, which came off as nothing more than a pathetic and tired stare.

"What, Yuta?" I grumble, my grouchy voice muffled by the duvet. He says nothing and climbs over me, lifting the duvet and shuffling in beside me. His cold back rests against my own, and I involuntarily shiver. The curtains rattle a bit, and I could tell he was staring out the window. I glance over my shoulder at him, and he shuffles closer.

The humble silence stretches on, the only sounds are the calm and quiet breaths escaping mine and my friend's noses. My eyelids flutter shut, and I exhale slowly, my tense muscles finally deciding to relax. I know Yuta felt my body slump, because he too relaxes. He curls into his own ball, back still against mine.

"Sorry, I'm just not feeling the best right now," he whispers softly, breaking the silence. His voice was raspy, and it seemed that his throat was dry. "Seeing you in that state this afternoon just..." he breaks off, and I hear his breath being muffled.

I sigh softly. "I'm okay, Yuta. You don't need to worry."

"Yong, we've had this conversation," he mutters sourly into my pillow. I turn my head to face him, but he remains staring angrily out the balcony door. 

"Just try to sleep, okay?" I say, rolling back away from him. "I'm tired, and I know you are too. We have school tomorrow, so just go to sleep."

He said nothing more.

After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, he rolls so he faces me, pressing himself to my back. His arms rest comfortably against my back and his fingers tangle in the fabric of my pullover.

"'Night, Yong," he whispers, his forehead gently resting against my back in between my shoulder blades.

I smile softly, finally letting my sore eyes droop shut.

 

* * *

 

The sky was shrouded in grey clouds, concealing the early morning sunlight. The breeze was calm and crisp, and I shrug my thin school jacket tighter around my shoulders. I glance across to Yuta, who was shivering like a wet leaf.

He didn't like the cold, it was something that anyone could tell at first glance of the Japanese boy. He buries his nose further into his knitted navy blue scarf, the tip of his nose tinted red.

It wasn't even that cold, to be perfectly honest, but he's a baby when it comes to the cold.

"You good?" I ask, hiding a snicker behind my hand. He shoots me a glare, reaching out and slapping my arm.

"Fuck off," he hisses, his voice muffled by his scarf.

"It's not even that cold!" I say, pulling out my cracked smart phone, sliding it unlocked and checking the weather app. My eyes skim across the screen, searching for the temperature. "It's...only 18℃ today with a high chance of a shower," I mock a weatherman, and Yuta barks a laugh.

"That's freezing for me!" He whines, tugging on my long sleeve like a child. I snort, rolling my eyes at his childish behaviour. He looks ahead, and straightens up. He waves, a bright smile adorning his lips.

"Johnny! Hansol!" He calls, lightly yanking on my arm to pull me towards the two other males waiting at the bus stop. The taller of the two males turned to look at Yuta and I, smiling and waving at us, too. The other male just glances at us before returning his gaze to his phone.

I huff at his attitude, letting Yuta drag me over to the bus stop. 

"Morning Yong, Yu," the taller male looks down to beam at us. His bright and friendly smile automatically made the corners of my lips twitch up in a delicate smile. His happiness was contagious, I swear.

"Morning," Hansol mutters, one white earphone sticking out of his ear (the other one hanging against his chest), the long white chord slipped under his shirt and connected to his phone. My smile falters slightly and I clench my jaw to prevent something witty from spilling from my lips.

Hansol and Johnny were polar opposites.

Johnny was tall, American-Korean, bright, funny, sweet and an overly great guy. He never failed to lift me from one of my grumpy moods.

Hansol, on the other hand, while being almost as tall as Johnny, was cold, quiet, sarcastic and just liked to piss me off. He was the one reasons why I'm grumpy most of the time.

Yuta sighs, stepping between Hansol and I, sniffling into his scarf.

"Every morning," Johnny mutters, head turned to watch for the bus. "Can't you guys go a day without getting on each others' nerves?" He stuffs his hands into his deep pockets of his coat. I snort, crossing my arms. 

"Yeah, the weekend, where we don't see each other." I retort, and that earns me a slap on the arm from Yuta. Hansol looks up from his phone, his lips tugged into a sour frown.

"Best two days of my life. No school, no Taeyong." He spits, grabbing for his other earphone and popping it into his ear. I grit my teeth, looking away from him and shoving my hands in the pockets of my jacket. I can hear the music pulsing from the earbuds—probably Block B or something.

Yuta rubs his temple with his fingertips, sniffling softly.

When the bus arrives, we board silently, and take our usual seats towards the back on the left side. We were always one of the first the get on, so we always got the same seats every morning.

Hansol sits at a window, his arm resting on the sill, his chin in his hand. Johnny sits beside him, pulling his phone from his trouser pocket and resting it in his lap to text. I sit at a window in the seat in front of Hansol and Johnny, and Yuta sits beside me. He rests his head on my shoulder, a throaty cough breaking from his lips.

I glance down at him, disgust written across my features. He knows how I am with germs. He just looks apologetically up at me, fluttering his long eyelashes innocently. I push him off my shoulder, a teasing grin on my lips. He pouts and crosses his arms like a child.

I don't think he really was eighteen.

The bus slowly began to fill up with students from a few different schools, ours being the most popular. The chatter was almost deafening—swears being tossed from mouth to mouth, junior high students causing a racket, the music from a random kid's speaker blaring. Us four just sat in silence.

The bus trip always gave me a massive headache.

Our school was the last to be dropped off, and we usually waited until the other students pushed and shoved each other off the bus so we wouldn't get caught up in the ruckus.

I stepped of the bus, light raindrops spraying onto my face. I sigh softly, hurriedly walking to the sheltered passageway into the school gates. Yuta coughs again behind me, and I stop to wait for the other three once I was safe from the drizzle. 

"I was kinda hoping it wouldn't rain today," Johnny comments as we walk down the passageway, a groan accompanying his statement. I nod in agreement, glancing over at Yuta who was being oddly quiet.

"Yuta and I were planning on walking to the petrol station to grab some doughnuts," I say as we entered the school building that held all our classrooms.

"Why wouldn't you invite me?" Johnny pouts, staring down at me. I shrug, grinning.

"Maybe because you'd buy the whole store out and still be hungry afterwards." I laugh. Johnny mocks my laugh and whacks me playfully on the back of my head.

We walked into our classroom—our homeroom teacher wasn't here yet. We walk to our seats which were situated in the middle of the room. I would have preferred a window seat, but someone beat me to the last window seat when we chose our seats at the beginning of the school year.

I dump my bag on my desk, plopping into my chair with a loud sigh. Hansol sits quietly beside me (I hated having him sitting right beside me), Johnny sits on his desk in front of me. His back is to the front and his feet rest on his seat. Yuta sat in front of Hansol, another cough escaping from his throat. He sat in his seat, but twisted so he faced Hansol and I. 

"I'm glad we have music first two periods," Johnny sighs happily. "I can work on my lyrics." Hansol silently agrees.

"I've got dance third period, but since it's just a single lesson, it's probably theory," I lean back in my seat.

"I _still_ don't get how there's theory for dancing," Johnny exclaims, looking between Yuta and I. We are both in dance. He shrugs, burying his nose further into his scarf. 

"I _hate_ theory for dance," he mumbles into his scarf. I fold my arms across my chest and nod in agreement.

"I _take_ the class and _I_ don't get why there's theory for the class," I remark. I peer around Johnny's large frame and I smile slightly. "Morning, Ten."

The smaller and younger male smiles sweetly and bounds up to us, standing beside Johnny.

"Morning, hyungs!" He chirps, hands clasped behind his back.

Yes, that's Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul. The first boy I ever saved. Turns out, that he was only a year younger than I, and in my second year of high school, he shows up as a first year. I had almost choked on nothing when I saw him.

Yuta knows that I know him, but Ten didn't know who I was, which was good. I mean, my hair was dyed green at the time. It's been a year, and he still has no idea. And he's grown on me—he's just so cute.

Johnny beams brightly down at the foreign student, reaching out and ruffling the younger boy's hair. He laughs and shies away from the taller male's touch, his cheeks staining pink.

"Don't do that, hyung," he whines, hands immediately flying to fix up his mussed up black locks. His Korean still wasn't one-hundred percent accurate, but he speaks well considering he is foreign.

"What classes—" Yuta breaks off with yet another throaty cough, his body rocking with force. "—sorry," he apologises hurriedly. "What classes do you have today, Ten?"

Ten hums, eyes darting down to look at his hands. "English, maths, double music, Korean." He lists off on his fingers. He looks at Yuta. "What about you, hyung?"

"I told you not to call me 'hyung'," Yuta complains with a childish whine. "It's like being called 'senpai' in Japanese. It makes me feel like I'm in some drama and it makes me feel old."

Ten bows his head quickly. "Sorry, it's just the way I learnt Korean," he says apologetically, rubbing the back of his head. "And back home, respect is everything. I mean, when a junior meets their senior, they must greet them with a wai," he smiles sheepishly.

"I know, I know, Japan is the same, believe me," he groans. "But I have double music with these losers here," he gestures to Johnny, Hansol and I, earning him a kick in the shin from Hansol. He hisses in pain, rubbing his shin. "Then dance, then sports and recreation, and lastly a free period."

Ten nods, looking to Johnny. "What about you, hyung?"

"I don't like being called 'hyung' either, Ten," Johnny pouts, crossing his arms. "Especially cause I'm the oldest here."

Ten rolls his eyes. "You guys are so picky,"

"No that's Taeyong," Hansol mutters, eyes still on his phone. I shoot him a glare, and he gladly returns it.

"I have double music, history, free, free." Johnny lists, interrupting the glare contest between Hansol and I.

"What about you, Taeyong-hyung?" Ten asks. I quite like being called 'hyung', so I don't complain like Yuta and Johnny did. Must be because they're foreign.

"Double music, then dance, obviously," I chew my lip, reaching into my bag to pull out my diary. "Hang on, I gotta check," I flip it open to where my timetable was stuck in. "After dance it's Korean, then I've got a free, so I'm heading home." I close my diary and shove it into my bag.

Ten nods and clasps his hands behind his back. “Lucky, you guys get free periods.” He toes at the ground in mock annoyance, a cute pout pursed on his light lips.

Hansol snorts. “We had to wait the same amount of time as everyone else has to get these privileges,” he didn’t raise his gaze, just continuing to tap away at the glass. I steal a glance at him and huff, turning to look back at Ten.

“The bell is about to go for homeroom, you should probably skidaddle,” Johnny checks his phone for the time, his tone playful. Ten laughs and salutes mockingly.

“Yes, hyung,” he teases, sticking his tongue out playfully. Johnny softly punches his arm, before shoving him back towards the front of the classroom.

“Yeah, yeah, get outta here,” he muses, watching the smaller foreign student disappear out the classroom door (adding a cute little wave as he steps out the door).

The bell rung, its shrill sound piercing my eardrums and causing Yuta to noticeably flinch.

Homeroom only lasts fifteen minutes before first period starts at 8:45a.m, the noisy bell signalling for us to get up and file to our classes.

Johnny bursts into the empty music room first (“Yo whaddup Mr. Lee,” he shouts in English), followed by Yuta (who just continued to silently bury himself into his oversized jacket and scarf), Hansol (who barged into me, almost knocking my already cracked phone out of my hand), and I.

We take our seats at a large round table towards the back near one of the grand pianos, dumping our music books flooded with sheet music and loose papers onto the desk. It was a group project, to produce a song—music, lyrics and all. We were kind of stuck though, our lyrics going nowhere and Johnny not being able to think of any tunes to play on the piano.

Fifteen minutes fly by, our heads low and our pens scratching on paper. One earphone in my ear, SHINee’s ‘View’ drowned out the loud chatter and bouts of music in the classroom. The lyrics were sweet but meaningful, and that’s how I wanted my lyrics to be.

I was snapped from my reverie by a large hand tightly grasping my arm and roughly shaking me to gain my attention. I yank my earplug out, a scowl on my lips and an insult poised on my tongue, but I halt.

My jaw falls slack, my eyes trained on the principal standing with Mr. Lee, a tall boy with chocolate brown hair standing beside him.

His skin was pale, broad shoulders hidden beneath a black and white long-sleeve shirt, the sleeves hanging over his wrists, a slanted jawline with a round face and a shy smile. My eyes widened as the principal turns to face us, the boy bowing in greeting.

“Look who’s back,” the principal smiles. “Third years, please make Jung Jaehyun feel welcome again.”

Johnny looks over to me, his own jaw slack in shock.

“What the fuck, Jaehyun?” I growl lowly, clenching my jaw and resting my chin on my hand. Yuta glances at me, coughing noisily as his gaze switched back to the tall male who’s own dark stare was on us.

He walks over to the table, a sweet smile stretched into those pink lips. Deep dimples indented into his cheeks, his head tilting down as he beamed down at us.

“Hey guys,” he says quietly, his cheeks dusting a light pink. 

“Fuck off, Jaehyun.” I snap.

His face morphs from one of shyness to one of shock as his jaw falls slack. He closes it, then opens it again, looking like nothing more than a guppy.

“It...it’s good to see you too, Hyung.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if the school is a little confusing. It’s a mix between how my school works and how a typical Korean school works. Taeyong and the others are in class 3A (cause they are third years and there are three classes to each grade, A, B, and C) which takes homeroom in E12. The only two classes they take as a homeroom in that classroom is English and Maths. All the other classes they chose happen in special classrooms (like music, drama, dance, woodwork, design and tech, science). 
> 
> I won’t go too much into it. 
> 
> Just, sorry if it is confusing. Enjoy! 
> 
> \- Kenny 


	3. nobody cared for my dream.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't fucking touch me," I growl. He frowns deeply, large hand grasping my wrist tightly. I hiss, trying to wrench my arm from his tight grasp. "That hurts, dick head! Let me go!" I shout, but he just digs his fingers into the tender flesh of my wrist. I flinch, a small whine escaping my throat.
> 
> "Not so tough, are you?" He says, his voice insanely low. It drives me mad. I curl my lip, sending him the harshest glare I could muster.

**Taeyong**

"It's...it's nice to see you too, Hyung." Jaehyun smiles weakly, and I bite my tongue, close to drawing blood.

"Jeez, Yong, calm down." Johnny hisses, grabbing my knee underneath the table and gripping it tightly. I reach down and slap his hand away, scowling.

"No, he just has the audacity to show up after  _four years_ and just say, 'Hey guys'?" I cross my arms, my eyebrows furrowed. "I have a right to be pissed." I hear Yuta sigh into his scarf.

"Yong..."

"No, Yuta." I snap, turning to the handsome boy before me.

Four years ago, he was stick-thin, shorter than I, with dark brown unruly hair, thin and hollow cheeks, huge innocent eyes, and skinny arms.

Now, here he stands before me, pale skin glowing in the yellow light of the classroom, his shoulders extremely broad, his jawline gentle but slanted, taller than I, with thick arms and a thick chest. His hair was a soft brown and it curled gently atop of his head, like a wave. His eyes were still large, deep and brown, but not innocent. He really grew into himself. His deep and cute dimples still were indented into his cheeks.

I inhale shakily, running a hand through my dark hair.

"Jaehyun," I say, and he turns his attention to me, his lips quirked up in a small smile. His dimples were barely visible, but they were there. I sigh. "Do you think I should forgive you?"

His face falls, and he toys with his fingers in his lap. He stays silent, and I continue.

"You suddenly up and leave us, leave me, without saying a  _thing_." I grit my teeth, my trembling fingers tightening into a fist. "You changed your number, you deleted your Facebook, your Instagram,  _everything_ , so we had no way of contacting you."

Anguish was etched into his handsome features, but I was not done.

"I thought you were  _dead_ , Jaehyun. For  _four years_ , we heard  _nothing_ from you," I angrily stand from my seat, pushing it out with such force, the chair fell back and hit the floor with a loud clatter. I rest my sweaty palms open on the desk, my lips curled down in anger. "And suddenly, you show up after  _four fucking years_  and expect us, expect me to forgive you at the snap of your fingers like I used to."

He opens his mouth to speak, his expression crestfallen. I hold up my hand.

"Don't even try, Jaehyun. You're nothing to me now. And if you think apologising will do anything, you're wrong." I grab my notebook, casting him a harsh glare, before turning and storming out of the classroom. The teacher glances at me, but says nothing as I slam the door shut behind me.

 

* * *

 

My music blasts through my earphones, EXO's "Tender Love" playing on repeat. It always calmed me down when I was angry, and this time was no exception.

I lay beneath the big oak tree in the courtyard outside, it's large branches shading me from the warm rays of the sun. The grass was a little damp from the rain this morning, but I couldn't care less. The wind was chilly, and it cut through my thin school jacket, but I was content, so I didn't bother moving.

My eyelids lower, shielding my gaze from the world.

I slept pretty soundly when Yuta sleeps with me. His aura is calming and it lulls me into a tender slumber. However, last night, I couldn't fall asleep. I lay awake in a light doze all night, just listening to Yuta's calm breaths and feeling his hands entangle themselves into the back of my shirt.

I couldn't stop thinking. I guess I had a feeling something big would happen today, but I didn't think it would be as big as Jaehyun coming back.

Speaking of the little (correction, tall) bastard, I feel a gentle hand on my arm, and a soft voice speaking to me. It's being muffled because of my blasting music, so I ignore him.

One earphone rips from my ear, and I open one eye irritably. It's Jaehyun, kneeling beside me, one hand resting on my arm, the other resting beside my head as he leans over me.

His steely gaze traces down my face, and he unconsciously runs his pink tongue over his light pink lips. I snarl, pushing him away with my arm that was not being held by him.

"Fuck off, Jaehyun." I snap, sitting up. My back is damp, and the back of my hair as blades of grass clinging to the black strands. He reaches out to brush the dirt and grass from my hair and back, but I slap his hand away.

"Oh, c'mon, Yong," he whines, his voice deep. It sends shivers prickling down my spine.

"Don't fucking touch me," I growl. He frowns deeply, large hand grasping my wrist tightly. I hiss, trying to wrench my arm from his tight grasp. "That hurts, dick head! Let me go!" I shout, but he just digs his fingers into the tender flesh of my wrist. I flinch, a small whine escaping my throat.

"Not so tough, are you?" He says, his voice insanely low. It drives me mad. I curl my lip, sending him the harshest glare I could muster.

"I hurt my wrist yesterday, and you're hurting it more!" I hiss, trying to pull away again. His brown eyes widen momentarily and he lets go. I rub at my wrist, soothing the already purple bruise and the now growing grey bruises in the shapes of fingers. I shoot him a glare, and he backs off a little away from me.

"S-sorry," he mumbles, and I just ignore him, rubbing my wrist.

"No you aren't." I snap. He winces and leans back on his haunches.

"Listen, I'm sorry, okay?" He says, rubbing the back of his neck. I stare at my hands. "I know it was sudden, and for a long time, but..." he trails off, staring at my face. "I had my reasons for it. It was sudden for me, too."

I stare at him, searching his face for any indications of lying. He looks sincere, and I sigh.

"I get that. But what about me?" I ask, and this time it was his turn to scowl. "I loved you, and you just up and left me." His face softens slightly, his his lips remained twisted in a frown. "I told you how I felt. Then I heard nothing from you for a week. Then Johnny tells me you left. Poof! Disappeared."

I felt tears prick my eyes, and I chewed my lip to stop the wobble in my voice.

Jaehyun takes note of the slight tremor, and he lowers his gaze, ashamed. Good, he should be.

"I thought you left because of me. Because you were disgusted with me." I continue on, my voice low to hide the tremors in my weak voice.

His head snaps up, his eyes wide. "What? No--never," he rambles. "It was never you, it could never be you. I could never be disgusted at you--"

"But I didn't know that, did I?" I interrupt. He lets his jaw hang slack, his eyes still wide, and shock written across his features. "I thought for a long time that you left because of me. It was hard, Jaehyun, to tell myself that perhaps it wasn't me. But, after a long time, I let go of that notion--and my feelings for you."

He closes his mouth, hand reaching out for mine. I slap it away, and a look of hurt flashes across his face.

"Don't, Jaehyun." I mutter, pulling my knees to my chest. "Just...don't. You broke my trust, and I don't want to let my trust be broken again."

"But you can trust me!" He blurts, his eyes frantic. He looks so desperate, so desperate for my forgiveness, it almost made me laugh.

"Don't make me laugh, Jaehyun," I stare at him, my tone cold. "Why are you so desperate for me? You have Johnny, and Hansol, and others, right?" He seems to contemplate this, his eyebrows furrowed and lips pursed. "Why do you need me? I'm not willing to forgive you any time soon, so you might as well give up."

He looks up, staring at me dead in the eye. The sheer power and desire burning in those brown hues startled me, my body freezing rigid. His eyes are mesmerising. Dark brown, with small flecks of gold scattered throughout the iris. The were so deep, yet hid everything. I found myself swimming in his hard gaze, drowning in its intensity.

I cough, blinking rapidly back to reality. I lean back against the trunk of the tree, his gaze still on me.

"I'm not giving up on you."

I snort. "Sounds pretty Shakespearean."

"I'm not kidding," he shuffles in closer, his knees brushing against my thigh. I flinch back, as though burned. Just his simple touch sent shock-waves rippling through my body. It was pleasant, yet I revered it.

"Didn't say you weren't."

 

* * *

 

Walking back to the classrooms, I could feel his steely gaze burning holes into the back of my head. I so desperately wanted to turn around and snap at him to "fuck off", but his gaze really has a lot of power over me, and I didn't want to be caught up in the web again.

His gaze used to be so innocent, so naive. He'd stare up at me with huge eyes, a cute smile with dimples in his cheeks. He'd call "hyung~" so sweetly, looking up to me like I was the most amazing person in the world to him.

I don't know what happened while he was gone, but something in him changed. His gaze is intense, dominant, and captures me like a fly in a spider's web. His body was broad now, and could easily overpower me if I gave him the opportunity to. He stares down at me like I'm below him—and his "hyung" sounds more mocking than endearing.

I throw open the classroom door, walking to our table at the back, Jaehyun following. I slip into my seat beside Yuta, and Johnny grins at Jaehyun as he takes a seat across from me beside Johnny.

"You took your time. I thought Taeyong had ended you," Johnny snickers, casting me a knowing look. I poke my tongue out at him.

"At one point, I thought he was going to, too." Jaehyun nervously laughs. I shoot him a glare, and a throaty cough breaking from Yuta's throat beside me.

I turn to look at him, and I frown deeply. "Yuta, you don't look good, are you okay?" I reach out rest my hand against his forehead. His skin was sickly pale, save for his red cheeks. It was also sticky with sweat, and his breaths came out uneven and heavy.

Yuta shies away. "I'm fine," he murmurs. He stands from his seat shakily, muttering about needing the bathroom. I watch him walk a few trembling steps before he collapses in a heap on the floor. I shove my chair out, gasping noisily as I dash over to him in alarm.

I cradle him in my arms, shaking him frantically. He was completely unconscious, he didn't even respond to my shouting and shaking.

I feel a hand on my shoulder, ceasing the shaking. It's Johnny.

"Hey, calm down, I'll carry him to the infirmary," Johnny says softly, crouching down and scooping Yuta's limp body in his arms. He stands slowly, and I stand with him. The teacher hurriedly scribbles a note for us, and hands it to me as I leave with Johnny. Hansol follows, Jaehyun on his heels.

I'd never seen Hansol look so worried before.

Johnny carries him to the infirmary, and the nurse lets us lay him on the bed. She checks his fever and she looks quite alarmed with the results.

"He's bordering 50 ℃," she says, looking up to us. My eyes widen and I glance at him. "Was he sick earlier?"

"He...he's been coughing all morning..." I say softly. "When we got out of bed this morning, he was rather warm but I didn't think much of it..." I stare at the floor.

"It's best you take him home. You both live together, yes?" She asks. I nod. "I'll write you an early leavers' slip, so you can go early." She turns to the bench and scribbles down on a note for Yuta and I.

"Wait, Yong, are you going to carry him home?" Johnny asks. "There aren't any buses running," he points out. I freeze.

"I-I'll carry him. It'll be fine."

"No it won't," Hansol snaps, glaring. "You'll probably drop him."

"Fuck off, Hansol," I mutter, and Jaehyun clears his throat.

"I...can drive you."

Johnny, Hansol and I all turn to face him, our mouths hanging open in shock.

"...what?" He asks incredulously. "I can drive."

"Since when?" Johnny asks.

"I learnt to drive in the States, then when I came back, I went for my Korean licence." He explains slowly.

"You went to America in those four years?" Hansol asks, clearly dumbfounded.

"Can we talk about this later?" Jaehyun mutters, gesturing to Yuta. "I'll drive you home. No ifs, no buts, hyung."

I turn away at the honorific. "Fine."

The nurse nods and writes a note for Jaehyun.

"Alright, go now. Make sure he drinks well and takes medicine." She hands the note to Jaehyun, along with a box of painkillers and cold tablets. Jaehyun nods and thanks her.

"Do you want me to carry him?" Jaehyun asks me, and I shake my head.

"I will."

I slip my hands under Yuta's knees and snake one arm around his shoulder, easily lifting him up from the bed. I follow Jaehyun out of the infirmary, bidding a farewell to Johnny (not Hansol because I'm petty).

We walk to the front gate, and Jaehyun presses the button for the office to let us out. He shows the camera in the intercom our early leavers' slip, and with a beep, the gate unlocks.

We walk to the student car park, and he unlocks his car. It's a small four-door Suzuki Swift, and I wonder if it's big enough to fit Yuta into the backseat.

"Here," Jaehyun opens the back door, beckoning for me to hand Yuta into his arms. I comply, my arms stiff from carrying Yuta. He gently slides Yuta into the backseat, buckling the seatbelt securely over Yuta's unconscious body.

"Cmon, let's hurry up and get you home. You'll have to give me directions." Jaehyun walks to the drivers' door and slips into his seat. I slide into the passenger seat watching as he starts the car.

The radio hums quietly, "I Need U" by BTS playing. I smile softly. I like this song.

He starts driving, and I give him directions. We reach mine and Yuta's apartment in no time, and this time Jaehyun offers to carry Yuta so I can let us into our apartment.

Once inside, the door securely locked, I lead Jaehyun down the narrowed hallway towards my bedroom. I enter, walking over to the bed and pulling the covers back. Jaehyun slips into the room after me, his footsteps light. He gently places Yuta on the bed, and makes quick work of removing his thick school jacket and navy scarf. 

When Yuta is only wearing his thin school shirt and pants, Jaehyun pulls the blankets up and over him, tucking it beneath his chin. He turns back to me, but not without glancing around my small and cramped room. 

"...isn't this your room?" he asks, and I nod. 

"Yuta likes sleeping in my bed." I say, walking out of the room. I come back with a glass of crisp, cold water, setting it on my bedside table. I place the two packets of medication beside the glass. 

Yuta's eyelids were fluttering. He was asleep now. 

I gesture for Jaehyun to follow me out. I walk into the living room, and he sits on the small couch. 

"I didn't know you two lived together," he comments, staring around the apartment. "How long?" 

"Two years," I answer, sitting beside him and resting my elbows on my knees. My fingertips find their way into my mouth, teeth gnawing on the short nail. I continue to nibble on the tip of my finger until it was raw and a trickle of blood was oozing from the tip. 

Jaehyun sighs, grasping my hand and pulling it away from my mouth. 

"You still chew your nails when you're nervous, huh?" he says softly, his gaze distant. I look away, and he stands from the couch, releasing my hand. I stare at my bloodied finger as he rummages through a cabinet in the kitchen. "Where's your first-aid kit?"

"Don't have one," I mumble, and he sighs. 

"Do you have band-aids?" 

"Yes," 

"Where?" 

"In the bathroom cabinet." 

He turns and walks briskly down the hallway, disappearing in the tiny bathroom. I could hear the cabinet being opened and plastics and stuff being moved around as he searched. The cabinet door slams shut and he reappears in the living room, a pink Hello Kitty band-aid in his hand. 

I frown. I forgot we only had the Hello Kitty band-aids. Stupid Yuta and his fascination with Hello Kitty. 

He sits back beside me, our thighs brushing. The slight touch left my thigh burning, so I inconspicuously shuffle away from him. He beckons for my bleeding hand, and I reluctantly place my small hand in his large ones. 

When had he grown so much? 

He rips the wrapping from the band-aid, gently wrapping it around the tip of my finger. Once it clung to my skin, he raises my hand to his face, gently kissing the tip of my bandaged finger. 

The simple action left a pleasant burn on the tip of my finger, my stomach filling to the brim with butterflies. I yank my hand back, the warmth burning me. He blinks, before staring at me with his dark eyes. 

"Taeyong--" 

"What am I to you?" I blurt, my cheeks burning. He takes notice, and he reaches out, hand ready to cup my inflamed cheek. I recoil back at his soft touch, and promptly shriek as I slip off the small couch and land on the ground with a thud. 

He snickers, resting his elbows on his thighs, his chin resting in one hand. 

"Why do you act like I have the plague?" He asks with a small quirk of his lips. I frown, standing to my feet. I dust down my butt and thighs, avoiding eye contact. I could feel his steely gaze boring wholes into my body, breaking my defensive walls. 

"I don't like being touched," I lie, my lips pressed into a line. He raises a brow, and he stands to his feet so he now looks down on me. "Can you leave? I've got stuff I have to do." 

He shakes his head no, crossing his arms across his chest. I glare, mirroring his movements and fold my arms. 

"My apartment. Leave, now." I snap, my eyes narrowed and my jaw set. He flinches slightly, clearly taken aback by my dark tone. I surprised myself, too. His smirk slips from his lips, instead replaced with a small frown. 

"Fine," he sighs, unfolding his arms and letting them hang limp by his sides. He turns and walks briskly to the door, and I follow. He yanks open the door once unlocking it, turning back to face me, his gaze miserable. "I'm sorry." 

The sincerity lacing his voice made my heart stutter, my tough facade almost cracking. I cast my gaze to the wall, and we stand in tense sullenness. He finally sighs after a minute of silence, spinning on his heels and leaving my sight. 

I shut the door hurriedly, clicking the locks into place. I exhale deeply, my chest tight and my heart racing. I lean my forehead against the cold wooden door, my lips trembling and my eyes closed. 

I inhale and hold for three seconds, before exhaling shakily. My breath was laboured, and it was not helping my pounding heart. I let out a broken whimper, turning and pressing my back to the door. I slide down the wood, my butt hitting the tiles hard. 

I bury my face in my knees, my shoulders shaking. 

It took me four years to build up that wall. And in just a day, he's brought it down again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG it's been forever! I may or may not have forgotten about this book.......... whoops.
> 
> Anyway, there'll be more than just superhero antics, there'll be PLENTY of angst. The first few chapters probably won't have a lot of Taeyong being a hero in it, 'cause I'm focusing more on stuff at his school and with Jaehyun so...
> 
> I hope you enjoyed!


	4. I get high off my lows and stronger from the blows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm cold." He whines, and Taeyong rolls his eyes, turning away to scrub profusely at the bench. It had to be squeaky clean and smelling of lavender. 
> 
> "You're always cold." 
> 
> "But I'm hot too."

To say Taeyong had a bad nights' sleep was an understatement. He was tossing and turning all night, cold sweat drenching his skin and his breath escaping his lungs in ragged pants. Yuta had actually stumbled out of bed in a feverish daze to try to shake Taeyong awake—he had been screaming. 

His nightmares are rare—but when he does have them, they're horrific. Vivid visions of things that Taeyong can't even remember, things he won't remember.

The only good thing to come out of the past eight hours is that Yuta stopped hacking up mucus. Taeyong forbid him from going to school, so the younger is just sitting on the couch, wrapped in blankets, pouting.

Taeyong rubs at his red-rimmed eyes, placing a bowl of steaming porridge on the small coffee table in front of his friend.

"Eat this." Taeyong says, his voice croaky. Yuta glances at him, sniffling. His cheeks and nose are a bright red, yet his skin was still pale. He wraps the blankets tighter around his body.

"I'm cold." He whines, and Taeyong rolls his eyes, turning away to scrub profusely at the bench. It had to be squeaky clean and smelling of lavender.

"You're always cold."

"But I'm hot too."

Taeyong groans and turns on his heel to face Yuta. "Shut up, Yuta," he snaps, and the younger just defiantly glares (it doesn't look very intimidating though). The Japanese male stares back at the steaming bowl of porridge, then looks back at Taeyong.

"Can you feed me?" He asks, and Taeyong chokes on his breath.

"You're not a baby!" He splutters, his pale cheeks flushing. Yuta pouts, puffing his cheeks out.

"I am today. Please?" He whines, fluttering his eyelashes. Taeyong sighs, giving the bench a quick spray with Detol, wiping it once more, before he walks over to the couch. He squishes himself between Yuta and the arm of the couch, picking up the bowl of porridge. 

He scoops a bit of it up with the spoon, and raises it to Yuta's pale lips.

"Open up," Taeyong says, and Yuta complies, chomping down on the spoon once it was in his mouth. He hums happily.

 

* * *

 

Taeyong pants heavily into his mask, feeling the sweat drip down his face. He glances up at a digital clock on the side of a building—8:52am.

Fuck, he thinks to himself, I'm late.

His inner monologue is interrupted when a huge metal bin flies out of nowhere and smacks into him. He collides with the wall of a building, feeling the cement crack beneath his skin and glass prickle his flesh.

Stupid Magnito making him fight before school. (Taeyong has fought him before, and he claimed he was Magnito. Taeyong told him that was copyright, and the guy said it was spelt differently to the Marvel character—but Taeyong honestly could care less. As long as this loser was off the streets.)

He raises his gaze, letting out a prompt shriek as another metal bin flew towards him. He pushes himself out of the crater he created, his body enveloping in a familiar red glow as he lands softly on the tar road.

He eyes the cloaked figure standing before him, and Taeyong raises his arms. His arms are surrounded in red, and he slams his hands on the road. The tar cracks, the pieces of road breaking apart as it raced towards the hooded figure. 

Magnito shouts in anger as the force of Taeyong's powers shoot him into the air. Taeyong grits his teeth in pain, feeling blood soaking his mask. He grips his hands into fists, the enemy's body glowing red.

He's got him now.

He screams out and swings his arms down, his nemesis captured in his telekinetic hold. Taeyong slams Magnito's body harshly into the cracked road. The tar split, and the man falls silent.

Taeyong falls to his knees, heaving heavily. His heart pounds against his rib cage, his breath laboured and his knees weak. He forces himself to his feet, stumbling over to the semi-conscious AB.

His helmet was split, his young face open to Taeyong's harsh gaze. He crouched down, ignoring the protest of his sore legs, and ignoring the wailing sirens and flashing lights. He reaches over and removes the cracked helmet, the man—no, boy—not even trying to resist.

He was young, with brown matted hair, blood saturating the strands and splattered across his cheeks. Taeyong tilts his head, the pain in his throat momentarily forgotten.

"Why?" Taeyong asks, and the boy just glares, spitting blood at Taeyong.

"Fuck you." He hisses, and Taeyong frowns.

A gentle hand grasps Taeyong's bicep, pulling him up to his feet. Men clad in blue uniforms grab for the boy roughly, ignoring his cries of pain as they handcuff him. Taeyong raises a brow.

"He can control metal. Are you sure he can't get out of those?" He asks, and the officer beside him, Officer Kim, shakes his head.

"They're special cuffs made to immobilise an AB's ability." He says, and Taeyong stiffens. 

"What do you know about him?" He asks again, facing Heechul. The older male hesitates.

"We looked into his profile a while ago, after the first time you fought him," he scratches at his ear, glancing back at the boy being shoved into the blue and white police car. "His name is Wong Yukhei, a Chinese immigrant," he starts, "he's...fifteen years old."

Taeyong stares at him in shock before looking over to the tall boy in the police car. "F-fifteen?"

"Yeah."

Taeyong exhaled shakily, then glances at the clock. 9:19am. He's late.

 

* * *

 

Yuta rests his head on Taeyong's shoulder, coughing softly. Taeyong shoots him a disgusted look, holding a cloth to his nose. The bleeding still hasn't stopped—so he decided to just skip school for today.

His head throbbed, and his pulse beat hard in his bruises on his arms. He had to patch himself up, since Yuta was still much too weak to be walking around. Hello Kitty band-aids littered his arms, covering the bleeding cuts and purple bruises scattered over his body.

"So...that Magnito guy...was just a kid?" Yuta asks, turning his head so his nose brushes against Taeyong's neck. Taeyong nods softly, hand pulling the large blanket tighter around his and Yuta's bodies.

"Fifteen. Only fifteen, yet he's doing...stuff like that..." Taeyong whispers, his throat hoarse. Yuta tucks himself into Taeyong's side, hand resting upon the older's firm thigh. "When I first fought him, his voice was deep, and he was tall, so there was no way I could have thought he was younger than eighteen, yet..." he trails off. "...what goes through someone's mind to make them want to hurt innocent people like that?"

Yuta shrugs, giving Taeyong's thigh a reassuring squeeze. "Who knows? Maybe he hate humans because of what they do to AB's..." 

Taeyong nods. That seems like the only reasonable explanation. "They had handcuffs designed solely for the purpose of detaining AB's." He says softly. "What if I'm captured one day? What if I can't use my powers to escape?" His voice is distant, his gaze dazed.

"Well, it's either that or he's demented," Yuta says, trying to lighten the mood. He stares up at Taeyong. "You'll be okay. Trust me." His voice lowers, and Taeyong could feel tears rolling down his cheeks. He dabs at his cheeks with his fingertips, the tips of his fingers wet. "Please don't cry, Yong," Yuta sits up and pulls Taeyong into his embrace.

Taeyong buries his face into Yuta's chest, the sobs finally breaking from his throat. 

Yuta stays silent as Taeyong cries in his arms, feeling his own heart pang in guilt. Guilt for what, he wouldn't know.

 

* * *

 

Taeyong actually made it to school the following day—but his scars and bruises covered in Hello Kitty band-aids did not go unnoticed by his friends—especially Hansol. ("Since when were you into girly things, Taeyong?" "Shut the hell up before I knee you in the dick, asshole.") 

He sits in Korean now—third period. He was glad Hansol wasn't in this class to annoy him about his band-aids. Stupid dickhead even pointed out the heavy bags sagging below Taeyong's large eyes. 

He rubs at his eyes with his wrist, thinking of just falling sleep here age now. He tunes out his Korean teacher, yawning softly. He had yet another sleepless night last night; even though he slept cuddled up with Yuta all night. His body ached all over, and his throat was still hoarse from all the blood he hacked up yesterday.

A light tap on the shoulder jolts him from his daze, and he shoots a glare to a sheepish-looking Jaehyun. He grins slightly, and rests his chin in his hand again, gaze on Taeyong.

"Don't think too much, it'll hurt your head," Jaehyun snickers, his grin teasing. Taeyong poked his tongue out at Jaehyun, focusing his icy glare to the teacher ahead.

Yuta, if at school, would be in sports and rec with Hansol—and right now, Taeyong just wanted to cuddle up to the Japanese male and whine about Jaehyun, but no, Yuta just had to stay at home for another day.

He groans, and the bell rings. Just his luck. He has music after Korean, and thankfully he shares that class with Johnny. Unfortunately, he shares that class with Hansol and Jaehyun.

But at least he has a free period last, which means he can go home and binge-watch "Boku no Hero Academia" and cuddle with Yuta.

He rushes from his Korean class, leaving Jaehyun behind to avoid talking to him. He arrives at the music classroom first, and sighs in relief. He dumps his books on his usual table, grimacing at the loud bang.

"Wow, so rough," Johnny comments as he (gently) places his books down beside Taeyong. The shorter shrugs, running his fingers through his messy black hair.

He takes a seat, and it wasn't long until Hansol and Jaehyun enter, chatting up a storm. They take their seats (Jaehyun thankfully sitting beside Johnny, across from Taeyong) and they settle into working on their song, idle chatter filling their calm silence.

After a while, Johnny perks up. "Oh, yeah, guys,"

Taeyong looks up from his lyrics, pulling out one earphone (blasting with "With You" by ASTRO) from his ear, focusing his attention on Johnny. The other two boys look at him, too. 

"Yeah? What's up?" Hansol asks, and Johnny grins. 

"So, you know how "Infinity War" just came out in cinemas?" He asks, and Hansol and Jaehyun exchange a look. "Well, Ten and I are gonna go see it. You guys, plus Yuta, wanna tag along?" 

Taeyong blinks, thinking about this. If he goes with Johnny, Yuta and Ten, he can easily avoid Hansol and Jaehyun. Perfect.

"Sure. I'm sure Yuta will be feeling up for it. When?" Taeyong asks, and Johnny beams.

"How does Saturday lunchtime sound?" Johnny suggests. "That way, we can grab lunch and then go see the movie." 

Hansol leans back in his seat. "Sounds fun and all, but won't we just be...third-wheeling yours and Ten's date?" He asks incredulously. Johnny flushed a dark red, spluttering.

"It-it's not a date!" Johnny stutters, and Jaehyun laughs.

"Sure it isn't," he grins, and Johnny sends him the bird.

"Sounds like a plan." Taeyong interrupts, smiling. "We'll meet at the food court of the shops at twelve-thirty, sound good?" 

The three boys all agree. 

 

* * *

 

Yuta lays on the couch, Taeyong in the kitchen, chopping up vegetables for dinner. It's Thursday night, and Yuta is feeling much better compared to Monday when he collapsed. 

His phone sitting on his lap buzzes, and he grabs it. It was a message from Jaehyun, and it was sent in a group chat. Yuta raises a brow and glances to Taeyong, before looking back at his phone.

He unlocks it and opens the chat.

 

**Jaehyun**

_Hey guys, can you please cancel on Saturday?_

 

Yuta frowns, hurriedly typing out his reply.

 

** Yuta **

_No, why?_

 

** Jaehyun **

_Taeyong still hasn't forgiven me. I think if we_

_hang out, just us where he can't avoid me, I_

_might actually make progress with him._

 

** Johnny **

_Okay, sounds good, but what about us?_

_We wanna see the movie too_

 

** Jaehyun **

_I got you guys all VIP tickets to see a 3D showing_

_tomorrow afternoon. You all finish early right?_

_The movie starts at 2:30._

 

** Ten **

_I don't get free periods..._

 

** Johnny **

_Let's skip_

 

** Ten **

_Sounds good~_ ~

 

** Hansol **

_Great! I don't have to see Taeyong's ugly mug on_

_the weekend!_

 

Yuta rolls his eyes.

 

 ** Yuta **

_Yeah but I still gotta see your face_

 

** Hansol **

_Ouch_

 

** Jaehyun **

_Anyway, don't tell him. Just don't show up and I'll_

_tell him that you cancelled. That way, he has to be_

_with me._

 

** Johnny **

_Sounds like a plan_ ~~

 

** Ten **

_Good luck~_

 

Yuta sighs and turns his phone off. To be perfectly honest, he wanted to see that movie with Yong, so the two could cuddle and stuff their faces with popcorn and cry over Spider-Man. But no, Jaehyun (who's been back for what, three days?) is already changing everything around. He notices everything about Taeyong—including his reclusive and repulsive behaviour ever since Jaehyun returned.

And his nightmares.

Taeyong hadn't had nightmares for months until the other night, the night after Jaehyun returned.

 _Coincidence? I think not,_ Yuta thinks with a small scowl.

"What are you thinking about?" Taeyong's calm and naive voice snaps Yuta from his thoughts, and he opens his eyes to see the older male peering down at him, his black hair shaggy and hanging around his face. His large eyes were open wide, his lips moist with lip gloss, with tears glistening in his eyes (clearly from cutting the onions).

He seriously looks like an angel.

"Ah...nothing," Yuta hums, reaching up and gently cupping Taeyong's cheek in one of his hands. His thumb brushes at Taeyong's lower lid, wiping away a stray tear. "Were those onions fresh?" 

"Extremely fresh," Taeyong closes his eye as Yuta thumbs his eyelid, his long black eyelashes tickling his skin. Yuta chuckles, ignoring the way his heart flutters at how cute Taeyong looks.

"What are you making?"

"Beef stir-fry. Something simple, since we don't have a lot of ingredients," Taeyong lifts his head back, and Yuta's hand drops to his stomach.

"Why don't you get some more," Yuta asks, eyeing the pink band-aids littering Taeyong's thin yet sturdy arms.

Taeyong used to be stick-thin. When he first started senior high, when he first became Limitless, he stopped eating properly, and he dropped a lot of weight. It worried Yuta to no end, seeing Taeyong with twig-like arms and ribs pressing against his skin.

Now, two years after that, he has gained some weight. He's still lithe, but his arms actually have meat clinging to the bone, rather than just skin and bones. His stomach was flat now, instead of dipping in at his stomach. He still had a narrowed waist—but he had always been like that.

Taeyong was healthy now—at least, with eating standards. For sleep, not so much—but it was progress.

"Yuta?" Taeyong flicks Yuta's forehead, earning him a whine of protest from the younger. His hands fly to his forehead, pouting.

"What?"

"You were staring," Taeyong frowns, lower lip jutted out. Yuta sighs.

"Sorry, I guess I'm still out of it."

"What do you mean? You were always out of it."

Yuta curses at him in Japanese. 

 

* * *

 

Taeyong stands in the food court, checking his watch constantly.  It was 12:45pm now, so where were the others? He left without Yuta cause Yuta threw up. Well, Yuta tried to make him believe he had thrown up, and after much arguing, he just gave up on the stubborn Japanese boy.

He groans, slipping his phone from the back pocket of his torn black skinny-jeans, checking for notifications—nothing.

"Sorry I'm late."

Taeyong freezes at the deep and mesmerising voice from behind him. The hairs on the back of his neck prickle up, and he represses the urge to shudder.

Jaehyun walks to stand before Taeyong, a huge grin stretched into his light red lips, his dimples showing. Taeyong swallows and frowns.

"...where are the others?" He asks lowly, already having a sinking feeling in his gut. Jaehyun hums, pursing his lips.

"Uhm...Johnny, Hansol and Ten had to pass, something came up, dunno what, they wouldn't say." He shrugs, smiling broadly again. Taeyong clenches his jaw and spins on his heel to leave. Jaehyun panics and grabs his arm, yanking him forcefully back. "Taeyong, please don't go." He asks, his voice pleading.

Taeyong turns back slightly to look at the younger yet taller boy. His eyes were shining, begging for Taeyong to stay with him—he looked just like he did all those years ago, and Taeyong could feel his heart melt.

"...f-fine, I'll stay. But you can pay for my food and the movie ticket." He stutters out, blushing. 

"Forever the tsundere, I see," Jaehyun chuckles, pulling Taeyong closer. "You haven't changed at all, hyung." Taeyong scowls, yanking his arm from Jaehyun's tight grip.

"Don't push it, kid." Taeyong snaps, and Jaehyun just grins cheekily in response.

They walk to one of the little cafes in the food court, and they take a seat. It was an Australian cafe, so it had Australian cakes and sweets and coffees. Jaehyun orders a large americano and meat pie. Taeyong orders a strawberry cupcake and a vanilla milkshake. 

Jaehyun smirks, and Taeyong glares at him.

"What are you smirking at?" Taeyong asks, venom lacing his calm voice. Jaehyun chuckles, the sound a deep rumble, startling Taeyong.

"You still have a sweet tooth, huh?"

Taeyong raises a brow. "Of course." He rests his chin on his hand delicately. "And I still see you like bitter or savoury foods."

"Of course," Jaehyun mocks teasingly, smiling broadly. Taeyong smiles slightly himself, the cute dimples in Jaehyun's cheeks too adorable not to react to. 

After a minute or two of idle chatter, the waiter who served them brought around their drinks and food. He gently sets the tall glass milkshake in front of Taeyong and sets the mug of americano in front of Jaehyun. He then places the plates of food in front of them. He bows and walks off, leaving the two males to start eating and drinking.

Taeyong takes a sip of his milkshake, smiling happily at its sweet taste. He picks up his little fork and begins to delicately eat the cake. Everything he did was delicate—it was cute.

Jaehyun all but scarfed down his pie (and quite neatly, too), and Taeyong was utterly shocked when there was nothing left on the other male's plate.

"You were hungry," Taeyong comments, taking small bites of his sweet cake. He licks the cream from his lips, and he glances at Jaehyun from under his lashes. The younger swallows thickly, picking up his mug and taking a huge gulp of his coffee. Taeyong smirks, noticing that Jaehyun's cheeks were dusted pink.

"U-uh yeah, I was," Jaehyun stutters out from behind his mug, avoiding Taeyong's gaze. The smaller male grins, taking another small bite of his cake. Jaehyun glances at him, then sighs. 

"Yong...I mean Taeyong," he stutters at the harsh look the older shot his way, "you have cream on the corner of your lips."

Taeyong raises a brow, licking the corner of his lip, but Jaehyun shakes his head. He furrows his brows. He'd know if he had cream on his lips—he was a neat eater after all. 

Jaehyun's long arm reaches across the table towards Taeyong, his thumb gently swiping at the corner of Taeyong's lips. He brings his hand back and licks at his thumb, causing Taeyong to choke on his cake, his face burning bright red.

"Jaehyun!" He hisses, kicking Jaehyun's shin beneath the table. The younger winces in pain, reaching down to rub at his shin. 

"Ouch, you're so violent!" He whines, and Taeyong just glares at him, his cheeks on fire. 

 

* * *

 

It's dark in the theatre, but the huge screen illuminates the room, engulfing it in a white artificial glow. Taeyong leans back in his seat, a packet of gummy bears sitting on his lap. He picks out one, popping it into his mouth and sucking on it before swallowing it whole.

Jaehyun sits beside him, immersed in the movie (thank god). Jaehyun yawns, stretching his arms up above his head. As he lowers his arms, his left arm comes to rest gently along the back of the seat behind Taeyong's shoulders.

The older stiffens slightly, but Jaehyun takes no notice, leaning over to steal a couple of gummy bears.

Taeyong could barely concentrate on the movie, his senses going into overdrive at the feeling of Jaehyun's strong arm resting behind his shoulders. The subtle touch left a fire burning in its wake, Taeyong's body aflame. 

He wills himself to focus on the movie, but as he's starting to pay attention to what was actually going on, he feels a large and warm hand upon his thigh. It lay near his knee, thick fingers squeezing gently.

The touch makes him jolt, hand instinctively slapping Jaehyun's hand away. The hand backs off, but the arm remains around Taeyong's shoulders. 

This was going to be a long two hours. 

 

* * *

 

The two walk side-by-side in the carpark, Jaehyun gushing about how awesome the movie was like a young child, waltzing happily ahead of a quiet Taeyong. He couldn't focus during the movie, at all.

The only things his mind could register were Jaehyun, Jaehyun, Jaehyun. He shakes his head, black fringe swishing across his forehead.

Pull yourself together, Lee Taeyong, he pouts, following a hyper Jaehyun to his car. Jaehyun offered to give him a ride home, and Taeyong, being the tired and lazy male he is, accepted with no second thought.

But now he was having doubts. Sitting in such proximity with Jaehyun would make his head explode.

Nevertheless, he climbs into the passenger side beside Jaehyun as he continues to gush about... Tom Holland?

Taeyong glances at him. "Who?" He asks, and Jaehyun feigns hurt. 

"The actor of Spider-Man, you idiot! Or were you not paying attention?" He teases, and there is a mischievous tone underlying his deep voice. Taeyong growls, crossing his arms and turning away from the younger stubbornly. He stared out the window as Jaehyun drives, ignoring the younger male as he tries to gain his attention.

That warm hand finds its way onto his thigh again—but this time it's higher up, mid-thigh. His fingers touch Taeyong's bare skin through the tears in his jeans, and his skin burnt. Taeyong gasps, flinching back. He shoves Jaehyun's hand off him, moving his leg away from the edge of the seat like Jaehyun had the plague.

Silence follows for an eternity.

Jaehyun sighs, slowing down to a stop. They were at Taeyong's apartment. Taeyong moves to open the door, but a loud clicking sound signals him that the younger male had locked the doors. He turns to Jaehyun, scowling.

"Let me out." 

"No."

Taeyong almost winces at the dark tone Jaehyun speaks in, his harsh gaze on his hands gripping the steering wheel, knuckles whitening.

"Why can't you forgive me?" He asks, his voice quiet. Taeyong sighs, slumping back in his chair.

"Drop it, Jaehyun," 

"No! Please, Taeyong!" Jaehyun pleads, finally turning to face Taeyong, a sad yet angry frown twisted into his lips. Taeyong looks away. Frowns did not suit Jaehyun's features at all. "Please? I'm begging you now. I can't stand you being angry at me," he's almost whispering now, his fingers twitching, needing to reach out to the older male.

Taeyong stares at them, exhaling deeply. He reaches over and grasps Jaehyun's warm hands in his small, thin hands. Jaehyun is shocked by his actions, eyes flying wide. The tips of his ears redden, and Taeyong smiles slightly.

"Your ears still go red when you're embarrassed, huh?" He says softly, and Jaehyun looks down. He nods slowly, and Taeyong runs his thumb across Jaehyun's knuckles. "I'm sorry. I forgive you."

Jaehyun's head snaps up, his mouth falling slack. "You...you mean it?"

"Yeah," Taeyong nods, looking away, ashamed. "I was being too petty. I'm sorry for hurting you."

"No, no, don't apologise," Jaehyun says, his blinding smile returning, his eyes shining. Taeyong smiles himself, gently taking his hands from Jaehyun's. His hands felt cold without Jaehyun's long, warm fingers wrapped around his palms.

"I gotta go now."

"Oh, yeah, right!" Jaehyun smiles, unlocking the car, and Taeyong exits the car. He shuts the door, and waves at Jaehyun as he drives off. 

There were butterflies in his stomach, and sweat prickling his palms. A giddy smile was on his lips, and he felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

Today was nice, he thought. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LIKE THE NEW NAME?? IT SUITS THE STORY SO MUCH BETTER~~ CHAPTER TITLES ARE THE LYRICS OF "NEW HEROES" BY TEN!! A FUCKIN BOP


	5. so I keep on keep on keep on...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You've had sex?" He asks the younger incredulously. Ten rolls his eyes and nods. 
> 
> "Numerous times." 
> 
> Johnny chokes.

**Taeyong**

It's early evening, the sky above beginning to glow a beautiful orange bleeding into midnight blues. The first stars were beginning to prickle across the sky, the crescent moon rising. My breath was hot, small clouds puffing from my lips, dissipating in the crisp air.

Yuta walks beside me, hands shoved into his pockets of his long beige coat. A mask hides his face, still a little sickly. It's been a week since my..."date" with Jaehyun, and it's Friday night. Yuta and I were on our way to Johnny's place for a party. We planned this on Wednesday, it's, quote unquote from Johnny himself, "Jaehyun's welcome home party".

I personally didn't want to go, but Yuta convinced me. He wanted to drink, and he'd need someone to take him home, so, here I am.

I tuck my hoodie up over my face, shielding it from the cool wind. Its my favourite hoodie, a plum purple thick pullover with pink writing stitched until the fabric. It read "sexual fantasies". 

I smirk to myself. I know I'm rather attractive, and when I wear this jumper, I certainly turn more than a few heads. Adorned with this hoodie were a pair of tight, torn skinny jeans. The tears were large, and showed the skin of my thighs and shins.

Yuta's clothing was a little less revealing, opting to wear a white shirt with a long beige coat, and tight black skinny jeans.

Johnny's brightly lit house comes into view, and I breathe a sigh of relief. We walk up the steps to the front door and Yuta knocks.

There's some shouting (in English, mind you) inside, muffled by the closed door, before a loud crash can be heard. Yuta and I cringe and look at each other, wondering if Johnny had moved and some crazy-ass foreigners moved in.

The door flies open, and Ten stands in the doorway, looking more than a little dishevelled. I raise an eyebrow, my gaze falling on the prominent hickey on his neck. He opens his mouth to speak, and I hold a hand up to silence him.

"I'm not even surprised at this point," I say, "you two were so obvious."

His cheeks redden like a cherry, hand flying to cover the red blotch. I look up from Ten, and my mouth falls open. Jaehyun leans against the wall of the hallway, watching Ten, Yuta and I in the doorway. He adorns red and black flannel with dark blue denim skinny jeans—he seriously had a boyfriend-vibe to him.

Ten steps aside, and Yuta pushes past me to hurry into the warm house. I scowl at his back, slipping my hood off and walking into the house. Ten silently shuts the door and locks it behind me, and I watch in slight amusement at Jaehyun, whose jaw falls slack as his gaze falls to the writing on my hoodie to the large tears in my jeans.

I had the upper hand, for now. 

I smirk at him and walk past him into the living room, barely sparing him a glance.

Hansol already sits on the couch, sipping at a bottle of beer. Yuta sits beside him, removing his mask with a loud sigh. I sit on the floor, on the other side of the coffee table. Jaehyun follows me, sitting beside me. I shoot him a glare, but he opts to ignore it. He leans back on his arms, lazily grinning at me.

I quirk an eyebrow, amused. "Trying to flirt?" I ask, and his grin falters slightly. His ears burn red, and I snicker. "Caught red-handed, or should I say," I reach out and pinch at his red ear, "red-earred?" 

Hansol snickers, but quietens when I stare at him. Hansol just laughed at one of my jokes. The apocalypse is nigh.

Yuta chuckles himself, leaning back into the couch. "Oi Johnny, hurry up and bring me a drink!" He calls.

Johnny responds with a muffled, "Okay!” Followed by a quieter, “So petty." Yuta pouts and crosses his arms like a child.

A minute later, Johnny walks out of the kitchen, arms full of booze, Ten attached to his hip. Ten’s own arms are full of shot glasses and a bottle of vodka. Johnny hands a beer bottle to Yuta, and one to Jaehyun. He sets his own bottle of vodka on the coffee table, and Ten sets his bottle beside it with the shot glasses. Johnny takes a sip from his beer bottle, sitting on the floor adjacent to me. Ten sits beside him. 

"Okay, so what should we play first?" Ten asks, voice chirpy.

"What about truth or dare?" Jaehyun suggests, and I cringe.

"We're not in middle school," I say, but Johnny cuts me off.

"That's great! And every time you turn down a truth or dare, you take a shot!" He grins, and I sigh. 

"You are all so immature," I mutter.

"Who should go first?" Yuta asks, taking a sip from his beer. He blinks a few times as he swallows, his lips twisted into a sour frown. "This beer is shit." He whines. Johnny shrugs.

"Put up with it, you big baby," Johnny pokes his tongue out at him.

"How about youngest goes first?" Hansol suggests, and all eyes fall on Ten. 

"Well all I gotta do is ask someone." Ten grins. He hums and thinks about who to choose. "Taeyong-hyung!" I raise my gaze to meet his, and I inwardly groan. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth." I say, and everyone groans. "What? I know what you'd all make me do, and I'm not choosing dare." I cross my arms, lips pursed into a pout. Yuta rolls his eyes. 

Ten thinks for a bit, biting his lip. "Are you a virgin?"

"No." I answer, and Jaehyun's head snaps up to gawk at me. The whole group, save for Yuta, are shocked. I glance at each of them. "...what?"

"You're not a virgin?" Johnny asks incredulously, and I shrug nonchalantly. 

"No I'm not," I say. "I only had to answer one question, not twenty. So don't bother asking." I hold my hand up to stop the other three boys from barraging me with questions. "Now then, Yuta, truth or dare?" 

Yuta thinks for a second, sipping at his beer. "Dare."

"I dare you to eat a whole lemon," I grin, and he scowls.

"Yong!" He whines. "You know how much I hate lemons!" I shrug and point to the kitchen. Johnny laughs.

"Lucky for you I have lemons," he grins and Yuta sighs miserably.

"You guys love to watch me suffer, don't you?" He whines, and I just shoo him away with a flick of my wrist.

"Yes I do." 

"Fuck you." He yells from the kitchen.

"Nah, I'd rather you not." I retort snakily back.

"I hate you."

 

* * *

 

It's close to midnight, and I hadn't touched any liquor. I know how much of a lightweight I am (although I hate to admit it), and I'd rather not burden the others by even having one shot. 

I'm sober up until that first shot.

Yuta’s tipsy now, and Ten’s bordering on being tipsy. Hansol, Jaehyun and Johnny are still extremely sober for downing like ten shots and a few bottles of beer.

I sip at my sparkling apple juice, relishing in its sweet, sweet taste.

"Let's play 'never have I ever'," Yuta suggests, voice slightly slurred. "Except, instead of putting down a finger for each one, you take a shot!" 

Johnny and Hansol both noisily agree. Jaehyun stays silent. Ten grins and nods enthusiastically. "Sounds good!" He chirps. I roll my eyes.

"I'm not drinking..." I start, but Johnny cuts me off.

"Oh come on, Yong," he elbows me playfully. "We'll water it down for ya." I contemplate this, chewing on my lip.

"Fine," I say. Jaehyun grabs all the shot glasses and fills them all with vodka. He fills mine a little bit, the tips water from a water bottle to fill the rest. 

"Oldest should go first." Ten says. Hansol sighs. 

"Never have I ever had sex." He says, cheeks flushed pink. I take a shot. Ten, Johnny and Yuta each take a shot.

I'm surprised that Jaehyun hadn't taken a shot (I honestly wasn't surprised that Hansol was still a virgin. I mean, he's a dickhead). "Jae, are you still a virgin?" I ask, and his ears burn red and he nods slowly. I laugh. "I'm shocked. I'm sure girls were flocking you back in the States."

He flushes further, cheeks now red. "None of them piqued my interest..." Johnny stares at Ten, ignoring Jaehyun.

"You've had sex?" He asks the younger incredulously. Ten rolls his eyes and nods.

"Numerous times." 

Johnny chokes.

"My turn," Jaehyun interrupts. "Never have I ever received or given a head." 

I sigh and take a watered-down shot. Ten also takes a shot. And so does Yuta. And so does Johnny. And Hansol. Jaehyun sighs deeply in defeat.

"The ultimate virgin," Johnny snickers. Jaehyun slaps him.

"So which one, given or received?" Jaehyun asks Johnny. Johnny hums.

"Not saying~" he teases. I scoff.

"He's done both. He gave his first tonight," I tease, and he splutters, turning beet red. Ten cackles.

"It was Ten wasn't it?" Yuta asks incredulously, quirking a brow. Johnny shakes his head rapidly, stuttering incomprehensible words. 

"It was me," Ten snickers, raising his hand to declare ownership of Johnny’s first blowjob. “It was adequate.” Johnny buries his face into his hands and whines loudly in embarrassment. Jaehyun reaches beside him and gives him a slap on the back.

“At least you’ve given one,” he says, voice shy.

"Gross," Hansol mutters, and Yuta elbows him.

"Given or received?" Yuta asks Hansol. 

"Received," Hansol says, slightly pink. I snort.

"Yeah, then the girl decided she didn't want that thing inside her," I comment, and Johnny chokes as he bursts out laughing, and Jaehyun laughs beside me. Hansol's cheeks burn dark red, glaring at everyone. 

"Shut up," he hisses. "It's your go." He mutters afterwards.

"Hm," I hum in thought. "Never have I ever done drugs." To my shock, Yuta takes a shot. So does Ten. And Jaehyun. "Y-Yuta, you do realise I don't mean Panadol or Advil..."

Yuta smirks at me. "Oh, I know."

I look to Jaehyun. "So you _haven't_ had sex, or even _oral_ sex, yet you've done drugs?" I ask, trying to mask the shock evident in my voice. He shrugs.

"America, man."

"'Murica, fuck yeah!" Johnny shouts, and we all laugh. Then we look to Ten.

"...what?" He asks.

"I'm not even surprised by you doing drugs," Hansol says, sipping his beer. Ten shrugs nonchalantly.

"I grew up in Thailand. You need any more explanation?" He says, and we all just shake our heads. "Your go, Yuta."

I fill one shot glass full of vodka. One full shot couldn't hurt.

Yuta bites his lip, thinking. "Never have I ever..." he looks up and locks eyes with me. A devilish smirk stretches into his lips. I swallow thickly. "...been caught masturbating." He grins maliciously as I glance down at my drink. I reach out and down it.

Silence fills the room as all eyes land on me. I swallow the burning liquid, eyelids fluttering at the strong taste. I flush slightly, the alcohol already affecting my weak ass body.

"What?" I snap, and they all continue staring.

"Caught masturbating?" Ten asks, a little bewildered. I glare at Yuta. 

"Fuck it, you'll find out eventually now," I mutter, rubbing my temple with my fingertips. "Yuta walked in on me one time masturbating. That's all their is to it." I snap. Johnny leans back on his hands.

“Yeah but it’s about whose name you were moaning out,” Yuta mocks, grinning like the devil he is. I reach over the coffee table to slap him on the arm.

“ _They don’t need to know that!_ ” I hiss, and he just giggles.

"Was it front or back though?" Johnny asks, grinning when I splutter.

"It's not 21 questions!" I shout. "Ten, it's your go!"

"Okay, okay, jeez," he grins. "Never have I ever had a hard-on for any EXO member."

We all take a shot, save for Ten, obviously.

"You seriously haven't had a hard-on for any EXO member?" Johnny asks Ten, shock lacing his voice. Ten shook his head, grinning. "Not even Kai?"

"Not even Kai." He grins. "VIXX are more my type," he winks. "If you know what I mean."

"Is it cause they're tall?" Hansol deadpans, voice beginning to slur. Ten wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. "Whatever, it's my go now..." Hansol contemplates on what to say. "Never have I ever been overseas."

Johnny, Ten, Yuta and Jaehyun all take a shot. Yuta's cheeks flush red, the alcohol starting to make him feel a little more than tipsy.

"That one was boring," Yuta slurs, pouting. I roll my eyes.

"Never have I ever had sex before I was fifteen." Johnny says. He was still completely sober.

How the fuck was that even possible?

Yuta and Ten take a shot each. I'm not even surprised by (a now heavily tipsy) Ten anymore—but Yuta? I stare at him in shock, my mouth agape. I was aware of the flush on my own cheeks—I was already tipsy.

From one damn shot.

"It was an accident," he laughs. "Plus, the age of consent in Japan is thirteen so it didn't matter too much!" He latches onto Hansol's arm, giggling like a stupid drunk.

Wait, he _was_ a stupid drunk.

Yuta was past tipsy now. He was borderline on drunk. 

"How can you have sex by accident—you know what? I don't want to know," I say, sipping my sparkling apple juice. Yuta just giggles in response. I glance over at Jaehyun beside me who was almost completely silent during the ordeal. I rest a hand atop of his firm thigh and squeeze it gently. "You okay?" I ask him, and he looks at me, a little shocked.

"U-uh yeah, just a bit buzzed," he stutters, the tips of his ears burning red. I snicker.

 _Cute_ , I think.

"What?" He asks. His cheeks envelope in a red hue, lips open in shock. I blink.

"Huh? I didn't say—oh..." I look away and remove my hand from his thigh.

I said that out loud. Shit.

"Taeyong stop flirting and have your go already!" Ten whines, now perched upon Johnny's folded lap. I blink. When the hell did he get on there?

"Fine, fine," I say. "Never have I ever pined or lusted after anyone in this room."

Yuta falters slightly, but reaches out to take a shot anyway. They all do. I raise an eyebrow.

"I can guess Johnny and Ten's 'secret' crushes," I say, causing said two males to flush, "but Hansol, Yuta and Jae?" I glance between the three. Jaehyun looks away from me, twiddling with his shot glass.

Yuta then sits up. "Never have I ever been hit on by an old guy." 

Oh, now that's just not fair. 

I glare at Yuta, taking a shot of watered-down vodka. Ten takes a shot, too (well he was a cutie, so I can definitely see that happening, sadly). Yuta just giggles, snuggling into Hansol's side. The taller male didn't mind one bit—if anything, he was shyly smiling to himself. I smile slightly.

How interesting. 

"You've been hit on by an old guy?" Jaehyun asks me, eyes blown wide in disbelief. I shrug, not really caring.

"Yeah, back in my first year of senior high," I say. "Some old dude at the bus stop tried to hit on me, but when I ignored him, he went and said my ass was flat, then decided to fucking grab it." I redden at the memory, burying my face in my hands. "Ugh it was so embarrassing! And even worse, I was 'saved' by Hansol."

Hansol snickers, leaning back against the couch. "I sure did. It was funny. And insulting." He laughs. "The old dude thought I was your boyfriend and he tripped over trying to back away from me."

I laugh, too. Perhaps it was the alcohol in my system, or the alcohol in his system, or both—but Hansol honestly wasn't that bad of a guy.

I can't believe I just thought that.

Jaehyun was not laughing, however. He frowns, glancing between Hansol and I. "It's not funny, Taeyong," he says. "Something could have happened." I roll my eyes.

"Well nothing did. It happened two years ago, so calm down," I say bitterly, glaring. I'm feeling a little hazy, so I don't think my glare was very scary.

"Anywa _y_ my go!" Ten interrupts, stretching on the "y" sound like an elastic. He sits up straight. "Never have I ever had sex with a girl."

I take a shot (still watered down), and so does Johnny.

"Ew, het sex," Yuta giggles. I sigh, he's very far gone. He's going to be a pain to take home. I grab my phone from the table and switch on the screen, checking the time.

12:28am.

It's late, Yuta and I should leave soon. It took us thirty minutes to walk here, but with Yuta drunk and me tipsy, it's going to take twice as long. I open my mouth to speak, but Hansol cuts me off.

"Never have I ever met an AB."

I fall silent. I'm not taking a shot for this one.

But Yuta and Ten do.

"You've met an AB?" Jaehyun asks Ten, clearly shocked. Ten nods enthusiastically.

"Mm-hm! It was right after I moved here!" He chirps. "I was walking home from my first day at school here in Seoul, when two guys emerged from an alleyway and jumped me." He frowns at the memory, his tone now low. "It was honestly terrifying. I thought I was going to get raped, or die." Johnny soothingly rubs his arms, and the younger leans into the gently touch. "But then someone yells for them to stop, and standing at the end of the alleyway was Limitless."

Hansol scoffs. "Yeah, right. He didn't show up until three years ago."

"This was three years ago." Ten snaps. "I know it was him because he had the same powers!" He smiles slightly. "He was wearing a school uniform, a hoodie and a dust mask. He didn't become Limitless until after he saved me." Ten stares at his hands.

My heart was swelling with pride. To hear this boy recount the story of how I saved him with such a fond smile really made my own smile stretch into my lips.

"He fought the guys off with ease, and called an ambulance and the police. He stayed until they showed up to make sure I was okay." He smiles broadly. "I owe my life to him."

Hansol was smiling too, leaning back against the couch. "Man, you're so lucky. He's my hero, yanno," he says matter-of-factly. I flush, staring at the shot glasses on the coffee table. "Limitless is amazing."

Hansol thinks I'm amazing? It honestly warms my heart to hear this coming from him. I smile shyly to myself, opting to blame it on the alcohol if anyone asked why I was stupidly smiling like an idiot.

"Who's Limitless?" Jaehyun asks, looking completely lost. Johnny barks a laugh. 

"I forgot that you're still new," Johnny playfully whacks Jaehyun on the arm. "Limitless is a telekinetic AB who is a hero around here. He showed up unexpectedly three years ago and assists police with criminals and other AB nuisances," Johnny explains, his voice bragging as though he were showing Limitless off. 

"No one knows who he is or where he came from," Hansol chips in. "He has his hair dyed an unusual colour and wears a mask." 

Jaehyun nods in understanding.

I look at my phone again and sigh. "It's been an amazing evening with you all, but I gotta get me and Yuta home." I say, groaning as I push myself to my feet. I stumble slightly, my left foot numb. I shake it, the familiar prickle of pins and needles weighing my foot down.

I hold my hand out for Yuta and beckon for him to stand. He whines. "Party pooper," he pouts, accepting my outstretched hand. I pull him up, and he staggers. I yank him out into the hallway, the others following.

Johnny opens the door for us, the icy wind whipping our faces almost immediately. I shiver, bending over to slip my boots on. Yuta struggles to do his laces up, so Hansol crouches before him and does them up himself.

I straighten up after putting my boots on, and I turn back to say goodbye to Johnny, Ten and Jaehyun. The younger male in the cute flannel is staring at me, well, at my ass.

He’s not even trying to be subtle. It’s cute _and_ hilarious.

He coughs and looks away awkwardly, shuffling his feet. 

I smirk. "I know I'm hot, but do you have to be so damn obvious?" I tease, and his ears burn red again. I laugh and wave goodbye. I give Ten a quick hug, and bid my goodbyes to Johnny and Hansol (yes, I actually said goodbye to this prick. I blame the alcohol) before I drag Yuta down the steps and into the night.

We walk (well, I walk and drag a staggering Yuta), out boots thudding loudly against the pavement, the world around us eerily silent and dark. The only light we had were the splotches of white artificial light shining from the old lampposts bending over to light the path. The sky was clear too—prickles of stars painting the ebony sky, the crescent moon shining overhead.

All was pleasant. We were halfway home at this point when loud footsteps pounded against the pavement behind us. I stop, but the footsteps don't. Yuta keeps mumbling incoherent Japanese, blissfully unaware of what's going on.

I spin around, just to be met with the chest of a man. I shriek and jump back, dragging Yuta along with me. Another tall man grabs Yuta, the Japanese male still completely out of it. I yank on Yuta's arm, trying to pull my friend out of the man's tight grasp, but to no avail.

"Let go of him!" I shout, and the man just laughs. It was cold, humourless.

Scary. 

He yanks Yuta from my grasp, and only now he starts to realise that something bad was happening. 

"Y-Yongie..." he stutters, then continues to spout random Japanese nonsense. 

"Yongie...how cute." The first man I ran into grins, voice malicious. He reaches out to grab me, but I back away. My back collides with something hard, and two hands grab me from behind.

I scream and tear myself from yet another brute's grip. I spin around, my heart beginning to stutter. There were five men. One advances on me, reaching out to me. I slap his hand away, scowling.

I can't use my powers here. I'm unmasked. I also can't fight them, my brain was working slower than usual and was buzzing irritably from the alcohol.

Two step forwards, reaching out to grab me. I swing my fist back and punch one in the jaw. He staggers back, cursing. Another grabs my arms and pins them to my side, but I just stomp on his foot, causing him to bellow and let go of me in pain. I take this chance to elbow him roughly in the gut, resulting in him doubling over in agony. I continue to punch, kick, slap, whatever I could, to keep the brute's hands off me.

That is, until the brute holding Yuta presses a shiny blade to his thin throat.

I freeze, and the man knows I won't go any further.

I felt powerless, for the first time in a long time.

Rough hands grab me and push me to the wall of the abandoned building beside us, the brutes all encircling me, trapping me. I squirm, trying to break free, but I glance up, and the brute pushes the blade further into Yuta's skin.

A trickle of blood drools from where the blade touched his neck. Tears glisten on his cheeks, his breath uneven.

"If you stay still like a good boy, your friend won't get hurt." He whispers, tongue tracing up Yuta’s wet cheek. Yuta shies away, squirming effortlessly. I scowl, trying to ignore cold and rough hands yanking at my pullover and belt of my jeans. 

I continue to death glare the brute holding Yuta, fighting the urge to retch as disgusting hands worm their way up and under my pullover, filthy fingers rubbing at every inch of my skin.

The metallic sound of my belt coming loose snaps me from my glare, and I begin to panic. The anxiety blooms in my chest like a thorny rose, prickling at my heart and lungs squeezing tight. My breath began to escape my mouth in uneven pants, my heart pounding so fast, I couldn’t feel a gap between each beat.

I clench my fist, feeling the familiar red power glow around my fingers—I need to save myself, save Yuta.

“Oi, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

The hands on my body (and slipping into my underwear) freeze at the familiar voice. The brutes all turn, and I felt the blood drain from my face.

Jaehyun stands there, cheeks still slightly flushed, fists clenched at his sides, looking ready to kill someone. I begin to squirm again, trying to free myself yet again. 

“What’s it to you?” The man holding my right arm spits out, sizing Jaehyun up. The younger is unfazed.

“Let go of them both. Now.” He orders, voice low. It was sharp, deep—it was edged with malice. Even I flinch at the dark tone, swallowing thickly. One man lets go of me, letting my pullover fall back down to hide my abdomen once again. He steps towards Jaehyun, cracking his knuckles.

“Oh, and what are you gonna do about it, huh, kid?” The brute lunges forwards, fist poised, ready to strike Jaehyun.

“No! Don’t!” I scream out, straining against the rough hands. They push me back into the wall, bruises beginning to form where their fingers dug into my tender skin.

The brute then stops dead, body convulsing awkwardly. His body collapses, and Jaehyun stands there, not a scratch on him. The man’s body lay on the ground, twitching occasionally—he had been electrocuted.

I stare, mouth agape. Jaehyun raises his dark gaze and glares at the brutes still holding Yuta and I.

“I tasered him. There’s plenty of charge left for the rest of you.” He growls, voice gravelly. The brutes reluctantly let go of my arms, stepping away from me. They slowly back away, the man holding Yuta clearly angry.

“It’s one kid with a fucking taser! Why are you all scared for?!” He screeches, lowering his arm to point the knife at his gang. 

“I don’t wanna get tasered!” One whines, and turns and bolts. The others follow suit. Jaehyun creeps up to the bastard still holding Yuta, grinning maliciously.

“I’d let go of him if I were you,” he whispers dangerously into the man’s ear. The man screams and lets go of Yuta, body convulsing. He collapses in a heap, body twitching. Yuta stumbles and falls, and I react fast by leaping forwards to catch him. 

“Fucking hell,” I mutter, cradling him in my arms. I press my hand to the trickle of blood staining his neck, my fingers shaking. “Fuck!” I hiss, trying to cease the trembling in my hands. 

Jaehyun steps forwards, crouching beside Yuta and I. Yuta cuddles into me, wailing hysterically, random Japanese spilling from his lips.

“I’ll take you home, okay?” Jaehyun whispers softly, voice now kind. It was a stark contrast to what it was when he spoke to the gangsters. I nod shakily, and Jaehyun stands up to his full height, towering over Yuta and I. He holds his hand out, beckoning for my own hand.

I raise my quivering hand and place it into his large, warm hand. His long fingers envelope my dainty and bony hand, the grip gentle. He pulls me to my feet, then crouches down in front of Yuta.

“I’ll piggy-back him home.” He says, and I don’t argue. Yuta nods slowly, stumbling forwards and collapsing onto Jaehyun’s broad back. He locks his arms tightly around the younger’s neck, burying his face into the red flannel. Jaehyun stands, hooking his hands beneath Yuta’s firm thighs. “Cmon, let’s go.” Jaehyun says, beginning to walk. I stumble to catch up, tripping on my own feet.

I was still unsteady, trembling in fear from what just happened.

I glue myself to Jaehyun’s side, not caring one bit if I made his walk more difficult. I grasp at his flannel in my trembling fingers, keeping him as close to me as I could. 

The rest of the walk home was bathed in silence.

When we arrived back to mine and Yuta’s apartment, I felt a sense of déjà-vu. This was the second time Jaehyun had been here in two weeks, and both times, he has carried an unconscious Yuta.

I unlock the door, pushing it open for Jaehyun. He enters, stepping on the heels of his shoes to pull them off in the kitchen. I untie the laces of my shoes and slip them off, placing them beside Jaehyun’s by the door. I then stand in front of Jaehyun and bend over slightly so I can undo Yuta’s boots and slip them off. 

Once the boots were off, Jaehyun carries Yuta straight to my bedroom. I walk to the bathroom, switching on the dim iridescent light. It flickers above me as I rummage through the medicine cabinet above the sink to find the aspirin and Nurofen.

I switch the light off and walk back to the kitchen to grab Yuta’s waterbottle from the fridge. I head back to my room and set the medicine and waterbottle on my bedside table. Jaehyun tucks Yuta in, draping him in my black duvet.

Jaehyun then turns to face me. I beckon him to walk out of the bedroom with me. He follows me out into the cramped living room, and sits on the couch while I remain standing. 

“Jae, I...” I swallow thickly, biting at my fingertips, my hands still trembling. He signals with a flick of his hand for me to step closer, so I do. He reaches out and takes my quivering hand in his, thumb soothingly rubbing the skin of my hand.

“Shh, I know what you want to say,” he whispers softly, voice soft like silk. “Of course I’d step in, Yong,” he inhales deeply, pulling me closer. I stumble, falling onto the couch beside him. “I felt that something was wrong, so I left not long after you did, and went the way you left.” I nod slowly, processing this information.

“Where’d you get the taser from?” I ask. He looks lost for a second then blinks in realisation.

“Oh, yeah, I just have one on me, just in case.” He smiles, dimples showing cutely.

Weird, I don’t remember seeing any trace of a taser, despite seeing two electrocuted guys... I shake the thought off, just grateful I got out of that alive. Both Yuta and I. 

“No, thank you, really, Jae, I owe you my life.” I mumble. He reaches up to cup my face in his soft hand, thumb brushing over the faint scar under my eye. 

“You don’t owe me anything, okay?” He murmurs, voice barely audible. 

We stay like this for eternity, gazing into each other’s eyes, losing ourselves in the other’s gaze. His were so deep, held so many memories, hid so many secrets. Stars twinkle in his irises, the universe in his eyes infinite.

I blink back to reality, standing slowly to my feet. “You can’t go home now, your place is in the other side of town, yes?” I say, and he nods, looking up to me with those puppy-dog eyes. “You can stay the night. I’ll sleep on the couch, you take Yuta’s bed.”

He objects. “No, we’ll share Yuta’s bed. You are not sleeping on this thing,” he gestures to the lumpy tiny, couch. I sigh in defeat.

“Okay, but let me go shower first. I feel disgusting.”

He nods, and I take my leave. I lock the door behind me as I enter the bathroom, immediately ridding myself of my clothes, stepping into the bathtub and sliding the shower curtain around it. I turn the taps on, and it rumbles before water spews from the shower head. I gasp as the water comes into contact with my skin.

It’s fucking ice-cold. The hot water must be all out again. 

I sigh, grabbing my body wash and scrubber. I soak it in body wash, and begin to hastily rub at my skin. I harshly scrub where I could feel bruises and fingertips touching my skin. I whimper loudly, scrubbing and scrubbing until my skin aches. It’s been rubbed red raw, the blood rising to the surface of the thinned skin. 

I scrub everywhere where they touched me, the skin close to breaking. My stomach, my hips, my wrists, my chest, my shoulders. They all throb as I scrape at the skin with my scrubber.

I let the cold water wash the suds and filth away, before I turn the tap off. I step out and grab for my pink fluffy towel. I hastily dry myself off, and glance at myself in the mirror.

My eyeliner around my eyes was smudged, rimming my tired eyes in black. The skin of my arms, wrists, chest and abdomen were scrubbed raw, flushing a bright red. I still felt disgusting, but I wanted to sleep.

I wrap my towel around me, and unlock the door. I push it open and dart into my room. I grab my nightshirt and from under Yuta’s head beneath my pillow, and rummage through my drawers to find a pair of boxers. I slip them on, dropping the towel. I then slip my oversized nightshirt on, bending to pick up the towel.

I throw it into the bathroom as I exit my room, heading for Yuta’s bedroom. The light in the living room was already off, meaning Jaehyun was waiting in Yuta’s room.

I walk into the bedroom to see Jaehyun lying on Yuta’s bed, the covers pulled back, a space beside him for me. I smile slightly, crawling into the bed beside him. He immediately pulls the blankets up, covering us both in its warmth. I lay on my back, and he moves so his head could rest upon my chest.

I blush, fingers tangling themselves in his brown hair. He hums softly, eyelids fluttering at the sensation. His fingers entangle into the fabric of my shirt, ear pressed to my chest. 

“Your heart rate is calm,” he says softly, snuggling into me. I let my eyes slip shut, and I hum in response. “It’s soothing.” He adds quietly, fingers tracing patterns into my skin through the shirt. I hum again, and he grips my shirt tightly. “Seeing you like that tonight scared me so much, Taeyong,” his voice trembles. “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you again.”

_Again, huh?_

I toy with his hair, humming a soft tune quietly. It seems to lull him, as his breath evens out, tight grip loosening. I smile gently, tilting my head to the side.

Sleep begins to absorb my body, and the last thing I can recollect is the feeling of Jaehyun and his legs tangled with mine.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY SHIT THIS TOOK FOREVER OML I HATE MYSELF  
> Anyways, how was it?? Oh lord this one was so long holy—6000 words baby wHOOP  
> And it’s like 12am so if there are mistakes ignore them lol
> 
> Also, if I can get this story to 2k hits, I’ll do a character Q&A~~  
> How does that sound??   
> I doubt enough people will actually read or comment by then but hey a girl can dream, right??
> 
> Luv ya, Kenny xx


	6. all of the pains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What the fuck were you trying to do?" I ask lowly, and he holds his hands behind his back, rocking on his socked feet like a child.
> 
> He cast his gaze away, pursing his lips. "I was trying to cook." He says, and I sigh.

**Taeyong**

With the sunlight streaming through parted curtains, two arms wrapped loosely around my waist and a head buried into my chest, I flutter open my eyes. I blink a few times, eyelids pushing away the sleep collected in my eyes. I tilt my head down, smiling slightly at the soft brown hair tickling my nose.

Waking up to Jaehyun curled around my body with his head upon my chest was something I thought I'd never experience. Looking at him now, asleep, content, he looks like a child again, the boy I had once yearned for, the boy I had once loved.

I gently card my fingers through his soft hair, hearing him sigh in bliss. He buries his nose further into my chest, the sensation sending shivers of delight rocketing down my spine. It was pleasant, it was sweet.

He may be taller than me now, with the handsome face of a man, but internally, he was still a child. He was still the boy who used to look up to me. I rest my hand against his cheek, letting my thumb stroke smooth circles into his soft skin. I lean my head back further into the pillow, staring up at the ceiling.

Why did he have to leave for so long, so suddenly? It marvelled me, and it always made me think just what has happened in his life and why it all played out the way it has. Perhaps it was not the way I wanted it, but clearly fate had other plans. I wonder what kind of life he lived in those four years overseas, away from everything he knew, away from everything he loved.

I hate him, really. He left me broken-hearted, and I put up walls to keep others out during those long years he was gone. Then, he comes back, and in such a small amount of time, he has already infiltrated my defences and broken apart my barrier. He really is special, and I hate him for that.

I gently unlock his arms from around my waist, carefully pushing him back. My body felt lighter now that his bodyweight was gone, and I quietly slid out of bed. Pins and needles pricked my skin, my chest heavy with the memory of Jaehyun's head pressed against it. I glance back at him, standing at the door with my hand on the frame. He lays peacefully on his side in the messy bed, arms reaching out for what once would have been my body, long fingers tangling themselves into the fabric of the sheets. He buries his nose into the sheets, curling in on himself. His soft brown hair falls across his forehead, the thin strands clumping together messily. The tips of his hair catch in his long eyelashes, the sunlight glowing in golden rays across his skin.

He looks stunning, without even trying.

I sigh, turning and walking out of Yuta's room. I walk past my bedroom, glancing inside. The bed was empty, and the pills on the bedside table were gone. I tilt my head in confusion, then I hear a loud crash from the kitchen. I jump, dashing into the kitchen, prepared to face an intruder.

I exhale loudly in relief when I see it was just Yuta in the kitchen trying to cook.

Wait.

Yuta was trying to cook.

He screams, the pan in his hands on fire. I panic, grabbing the pan from his hands, dumping it into the sink and turning on the tap. The fire dissipates, smoke filling the air. I pant heavily, leaning against the bench, before I pin Yuta with a dark glare, causing him to gulp audibly. His light purple hair was a mess, skin light and his lips dark and dry. His eyes were wide, panicked.

"What the fuck were you trying to do?" I ask lowly, and he holds his hands behind his back, rocking on his socked feet like a child.

He cast his gaze away, pursing his lips. "I was _trying_ to cook." He says, and I sigh.

"Yuta, this is why you don't cook," I gesture to the burnt pan, and I hear him laugh awkwardly.

"Ah, yeah, about that," he says nervously, and I hold up a hand to silence him.

"I'll go buy a new pan, and some breakfast, okay?" I say, and he goes to protest, but I cut him off, "You're still hungover from last night, aren't you?" He nods slowly. "Do you remember anything from last night?"

He goes rigid, staring at the floor. "Kinda," he whispers, "I remember feeling someone press a knife to my throat, and I remember hearing you screaming for me." He looks up at me. "You're okay though, right? They didn't hurt you?" He reaches out, grasping my shoulders gently. I force a small smile, and he automatically knows it's fake. "Yong..."

"I'm okay, really. Jaehyun saved us."

At the mention of the other male's name, Yuta's eyebrows draw together and his lips curl down in a distasteful frown.

"How did he know where we were?" Yuta asks lowly, and I shrug.

"He left not long after we did, and he said he felt like something was wrong so he headed to our apartment and stumbled upon us and...them," I explain softly, watching his gaze. It was unreadable, lips pressed into a line.

"Is he still here?" He asks, and I nod. He blinks at me. "You...where did he sleep?"

"With me, in your bed."

Yuta frowns deeper, letting go of my shoulders. I match his frown, staring at his back as he turns away from me.

"You two didn't...you know...?" He asks, uncertain. My mouth falls open, eyebrows knit together.

"No!" I exclaim, "and even if we did, why does it concern you?" He turns back to look at me, seemingly angry. I raise a brow. "Yuta, you're my best friend, why does it concern you who I take to bed?"

"Why does it—" he cuts himself off, biting his tongue, hard. He looks away, then looks at me. "I know you'd wanna know who I've been fucking, so I'd like to know too."

"What do you mean by that? Who have you been fucking?" I ask, a growl lacing my voice.

"No one! It's an example!" He says, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

"Why the fuck are you getting so worked up about this?" I growl, and he falls silent, casting his gaze at anywhere but my face. "You know what? Never fucking mind," I turn and storm into my room, grabbing out new clothes and hurriedly changing into them. I ended up throwing on a plain grey jumper and a pair of black sweatpants. I grab my backpack, swinging it onto my back. It has my wallet, and Limitless' outfit.

I storm back out into the kitchen, and Yuta tries to grab my arm. I snatch my arm back, sending him a glare. He glares right back.

"Why are you getting so defensive?" He asks, tone low. I almost shudder at the darkness his voice held, but I remained stoic. I crouch down, slipping my boots onto my feet, hurriedly tying the laces. "You weren't like this before he came back." Yuta snaps, and I stand to my feet, not bothering to face him.

"I'm leaving. I'll be back later with breakfast." I mutter, grabbing the spare keys off the hook by the door, and I storm out of the apartment. I hear the door slam behind me, and I almost expected Yuta to come running after me, but he didn't.

Good. I don't understand what his deal is, why he is acting the way he is. He tells me I never acted this way until Jaehyun came back, but if anything, he's become more hostile.

I tuck my hands under my armpits, the cool wind of the city cutting through my jumper. Maybe I should have dressed warmer, but I was angry and just wanted out of there so this was all I had grabbed. And I was not going back.

I make my way towards a quaint cafe nearby, hoping to miss the early morning bustle and grab some coffee and breakfast for Yuta, Jaehyun and I.

I lower my eyelids, weaving easily through the small crowd of early-morning workers hurrying to work along the pathway. I don't understand anything right now. I'm sure Yuta will come around eventually.

A loud scream and smashing of glass snap me from my thoughts, just in time to see an out of control car come barrel-rolling towards me. I gasp and leap out of the way, my side hitting the brick of the building beside me. I hear the impact of the car against a building, metal scraping against cement and brick. I also hear a body hit the ground, the sickening crack of the skull as it hits the concrete of the pathway.

I turn my head away from the sight to try and see what threw the car. People were screaming and running away from whatever it was, a few shoulders slamming into me as I try to look over the heads of frightened bystanders.

My eyes widen, and I feel my blood boil.

_It's Magnito._

How he escaped, I don't think I want to know. However, I needed to focus on my task at hand—defeat Magnito.

I dash into a jewellery store nearby me, running to the toilets in the back. I hurriedly change, being an expert at combining the use of my powers and manual labour to switch clothes from Taeyong to Limitless. I run white dye through my hair, adjusting my red mask, zipping up my pants and buttoning up my denim vest.

_Limitless is ready._

I dash out of the shop, taking off into the air and using my telekinesis to help me float steadily before Magnito. He turns his head, eyes falling on me. He got his mask back—it was no longer broken. It was odd, but I chose to ask questions later.

He opens his mouth to speak, but I don't give him a chance to. I wave my arms, his body engulfing in red before he flies back with the force of a tank. I make a grabbing motion with my hand, throwing his body down like he was nothing more than a toy. His body collides with a car on the road, and he screams out in both pain and frustration.

He stands, and proceeds to pick up a few cars with his powers, sending them all flying towards me. I dodge the first couple, trying to use my telekinesis to create a forcefield around me, but I was too late, one of the cars knocking into me and sending me plummeting towards the road. Before I hit the ground, a metal road guard rail wraps itself around me, squeezing me tight like a boa.

I scream out in pain as it tightens it's hold, scrunching my eyes shut. My body felt like it was breaking slowly, my ribs cracking as the metal constricted tighter and tighter. I crack open my eyes through the agonising pain, pinning Magnito with a glare. He stands on the tar road before me, hand raised, clenching his fist tight. It was glowing a silver colour, as was the guard rail.

He walks closer to me, agonisingly slow. His boots are loud, thumping as my blood rushes in my ears. He stops directly in front of me, and I can see a wicked grin spread on his lips beneath his mask.

"'Surprised to see me?', I was going to say before you so rudely interrupted me," he mocks, tilting his head to one side. "I didn't escape, if that's what you're thinking. I was let out." He laughs, clearly finding the look of fury on my face amusing. "The person that released me also told me something about you. If your hands are immobilised, you can't use your powers."

_Well fuck. He figured it out._

_No, he didn't. Someone told him._

_Fuck, Taeyong, you can't think about this now. Escape first, beat up Magnito, questions and answers later._

I scream out as I feel another rib crack, my body doubling over. Magnito mocks me, tutting me. He forces me upright with the guard rail, and the rail tightened again.

I feel a few tears escape my eyes, my mask absorbing the water.

_Must...get...out!_

I had barely time to breathe as a tingling sensation covers my body, the metal around my body crushing nothing. I collapse, my body completely phasing through the guard rail.

"Wait what the fuck?!" Magnito screeched, leaping back away from me. I slam my hands on the road, the tar cracking and shooting up underneath him, the cracked tar glowing red as I shoot him into the air.

I stand shakily, my hand trembling as I weakly grasp him in my telekinetic hold, limply throwing him against a building. He lands with a loud grunt, but he stands quickly and begins to laugh.

"Wow, what a weakling." He mocks, waving his hand, a massive over-head green sign floating above him. It was a sign used to direct people on the roads, telling them what exit to take. I feel my heart sink as the sign swung back, and I hold my hands in front of my face, attempting a pathetic forcefield.

The metallic sign collides with my body like a bat hitting a ball, sending my body flying away like a baseball. I scream loudly as my back breaks the tar of the road, my meek body skidding through the broken asphalt. I lay limply in the crater I created, my chest hurting with every heavy breath.

I turn my head, hearing shocked pedestrians and innocent bystanders, and my heart stops dead in my chest. Staring at me from the sidewalk with a mix of awe and horror was Jaehyun.

I open my mouth, but my voice is croaky, gravelly. I cough, blood spilling from my lips. I push myself up, stumbling numerous times. I look away from Jaehyun, seeing Magnito walking towards me down the empty, cracked road, a massive semi-trailer hovering above his head.

"Now, you die!" He shouts, making a throwing motion with his arms. The massive truck comes hurtling towards me, and I panic.

_If I create a forcefield, it'll just rebound off it and hit a bystander, or worse, Jaehyun._

_But if I don't, it'll hit me and I'll die._

_But if I do, Jaehyun will die._

I cover my ears and scream in frustration, feeling waves upon waves of energy pulse from my body. The force sends the truck barrelling away, breaking the windows of every building around me. Glass smashes against the road, and car's security alarms begin to blare as their windows smash. Magnito is knocked back, the truck just missing him and landing behind him, some hundred metres away from me.

I collapse to my knees, and I hear an applause and cheers erupt from the crowd of bystanders. I glance at them, and Jaehyun was gone.

 _Good_.

I stumble away before anyone can confront me, and before any bystander can get to me. I stumble back to the jewellery store I left my bag in, the glass of the windows and cases smashed, shards of sparkling white littering the abandoned store.

I collapse to my hands and knees behind the counter, tearing my mask off and puking up blood. The red substance spewed from my nose and mouth, coating my face, my hands and the floor in dark red. I sob loudly, the pain in my chest agonising. Each breath was painful, my weak arms shaking to hold me up.

I fall to my side, choking on the blood in my mouth. I limply reach into my backpack, grabbing out my phone. I unlock it, finding Yuta's number. I hold it to my ear with a bloodied and quivering hand, the cracked screen now coated in blood.

He picks up in two rings, and I choke into the receiver.

"I'm hurt. I can't move. Yuta, I need you."

" _Where are you? I'll come to you. Try to get out of your costume so I can call an ambulance._ " He says, voice laced with panic.

I cough weakly, my ribs aching in protest. "I don't think I can move, Yuta. I hurt so fucking much."

" _Okay, just tell me where you are_."

"Prouds jewellery store near the Mexican restaurant." I murmur, feeling my eyelids grow heavy, my breath laboured.

" _Okay I'll be right there. Don't fall asleep, Yong."_

I ignore him, letting my arm flop, the phone slipping from my fingers.

 

* * *

 

I scream, my eyes flying open. A rough hand pins me down, preventing me from squirming. My eyelids were as heavy as lead, my throat tasting of plastic. I feel tubes sticking into my nose, and my gaze flits across the room, taking in my surroundings.

I'm in a hospital.

I blink, the adrenaline in my system slowly calming down. A gentle hand rests on my arm, and I look up. It's Yuta, smiling softly at me.

"Nice to see you again, Sleeping Beauty," he teases, and I poke my tongue at him.

"Took you long enough, I lost my beauty sleep for this," another voice spoke, and usually I'd never want to hear it again for the rest of my life, but right now, I'm so happy to hear Hansol. The tall blonde stands just behind Yuta, a calm but slightly worried expression on his features.

"We thought you were a goner," someone else says, standing on my other side. I look over at who it was, smiling weakly up at Johnny and Ten. "The doctors said you coughed up a lot of blood."

"I'm okay," I croak out, attempting to sit up. Yuta helps me lean against the back of the bed, my ribs screaming in protest.

"What on earth happened?" Hansol asks, arms folded across his chest, watching Yuta and I. I shrug, leaning my head back against the headboard.

"I guess I got caught in the crossfire between Limitless and Magnito." I say, lying easily. Johnny blinks, finding this a little unbelievable.

"Are you sure? What were you doing there?" He asks. I shrug again, trying to ignore the pain in my chest.

"I went out to get breakfast because Yuta burnt the pan, and I walked right into the fight and I think I got thrown back by accident," I answer, and he seems to buy it, reaching forwards and resting a hand on my arm.

"Well, Yong, I'm glad you're okay." He smiles, and Ten nods.

"I don't know what I'd do if you died," he says softly, and I feel my heart constrict painfully.

 _I almost did die_. I almost say, but I don't.

Then it hits me.

"Where's Jaehyun?" I ask, interrupting the mild conversation between the four males at my bedside. They all look at each other. Yuta's gaze was dark, sighing softly.

"I don't know, he woke up and left the building looking for you yesterday. Haven't see him since." He mumbles. "Why?"

I stare at my hands, a bandage wrapped around my left arm. "He was there. At the fight. What if he got hurt?"

"I'm sure he's fine," Yuta mutters, looking away.

"Yuta's right, Jaehyun's fine," Johnny smiles, "you know him, he's probably at home."

"Then why isn't he here?" I ask, and my gaze immediately falls on Yuta. "Did you not tel him I was in hospital?"

"I did text him," Yuta snaps. "He didn't respond."

"Sure," I mutter, and Yuta rolls his eyes, looking away from me.

"Calm down, both of you," Ten cuts in, slicing the tension. "Yuta messaged us all in a group chat, and Jaehyun didn't read the message either, so we don't know what happened."

I nod slowly, turning my head to stare out the window. 

 

* * *

 

A shadow falls over Magnito's unconscious body, a man crouching down beside him.

"Pathetic," he says, clenching his fist tightly. A jolt of electricity shoots through Magnito's body, jolting him awake. His helmet falls from his face, cracked.

"Y-you..." the boy stutters, breath laboured.

"I'm going to confront Limitless myself. You barely did any damage to him." The man says, standing to his feet. "Wong Yukhei."

Yukhei scrambled to his feet, feeling prickles of electricity shocking his nerves. "I broke him!" He cries, trying to reason with the man. The roads were empty, police tape securing the area. Bodies of police officers lay scattered around the premise, bodies twitching from being electrocuted.

"He broke himself." The man snaps, turning to face the taller boy. "His weakness is his own powers."

Yukhei clenched his jaw, frowning. "I only did this so I could get my life back, what more do you want with me? They almost started experimenting on me, you know!" He shouts, and the man laughs bitterly.

"You're going to be my 'henchman'," the man says, then cocks his head to one side. "I know they almost started experiments on you. I was the one that broke you out, remember?"

"...well yes but..." Yukhei trails off.

"I was experimented on. I won't let you go through that," the man says lowly. "Humans are vile and disgusting, and they can all perish. Starting with the one who wishes to protect them, Limitless." He clenches his fist, and electricity crackles in his fingers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OML this took so fucking long I am so so sorry OML it's been like six months since I last updated this holy fuck man :0 
> 
> Anyways, theories? I wanna hear some! I'm gonna try to update this more regularly (heh, get it?), so be ready! 
> 
> Enjoy~~


	7. tastes of the sweat and dirt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You look like shit," he says, gesturing to the bruises on my cheek and scratches across my skin. I scowl, crossing my arms across my chest, ignoring the protest of pain from my ribs. 
> 
> "I take back every nice thing I just thought about you," I mutter sourly, sticking my bottom lip out in a pout. He laughs, the sound deep and melodic. His eyes crinkle, his lips curling up in the corners in a beautiful smile.

**Taeyong**

"I'll be fine, Yuta," I say softly, grimacing at the tight grip Yuta has around my hand. His fingers grasp my hand tightly, crushing the fine bones under my skin. He frowns, sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, gingerly brushing his thumb across my knuckles.

"I'm just worried, is that so wrong?" He asks, staring at our hands. I shake my head, trying to tug my hand away again.

"Yuta, you're crushing my hand," I say, "soon I'll have more than just crushed ribs if you keep this up." He flinches, letting go of my hand. I massage my sore hand, sighing softly in relief. "I get that you're worried, Yuta, but I was here last night, too."

Yuta looks at me, his gaze soft. "But I was here with you last night." He then looks away yet again, staring at his hands on his lap. His gaze fixates on the hand that had just held mine, his cheeks dusting in soft pink. "I don't want to leave you alone again."

"Yuta," I sigh, my tone harsh, "you're not my mum, stop being so protective." I sit up, my ribs groaning in protest. "I understand you're worried, but I'm an adult, not a child that has to have my hand held twenty-four-seven."

I wince at the hurt look that crosses Yuta's features, his eyes widening in shock at my tone. He blinks a few times, and I can see his lower lids glistening with tears.

"Yuta...please don't cry," I whisper, reaching over to him with my hand. My fingertips brush his arm, but he flinches away.

He stands from the bed, facing away from me. "I'll leave now. Sleep well." He murmurs, voice cracking. I call his name again, but he ignores me, softly shutting the door behind him as he leaves.

I groan loudly, leaning back against the head of the bed. I was alone now, and I didn't like it. I curl up into a ball, burying my face in my knees, ignoring the agony in my ribs.

_Yuta...please don't leave me..._

 

* * *

 

The moonlight caresses Taeyong's skin, illuminating his peaceful sleeping face. A shadow looms over his body, a hand resting on the bed beside his face. Rough, calloused fingertips stroke the soft skin of Taeyong's cheek, dark eyes drinking in the way the boy's features twitch, eyelashes fluttering slightly. He was serene; beautiful.

Dark eyes rake down Taeyong's surreal face, glowing in the white light of the moon. Skin as soft as silk, stretched over delicate, high cheek bones with petal-pink lips, long black eyelashes casting aerial shadows as they brush against his cheeks—yes, serene was the right word for him.

"A truly stunning specimen," a low voice whispers, ghosting their fingers down Taeyong's diamond-cut jaw, trailing them along his thin-columned neck, small sparks of electricity pricking from their fingertips, sending small shocks through the boy's body. The sleeping boy shuffles in his sleep, small noises of distress leaving his lips.

The soft sounds slowly morph into loud whimpers, making the figure on top of him freeze. Taeyong sobs, his hands finding their way to his face. He begins to scream, startling the figure.

"It's a fucking nightmare," they hiss, and Taeyong's eyes snap open with a heart-wrenching scream.

 

* * *

 

I bolt upright, a scream tearing from my throat. My ribs screech in agony, tears pouring down my cheeks. The door slams open, and a male nurse rushes in to my bedside, the room illuminating in yellow artificial light. 

"Taeyong! Mr. Lee! Calm down!" He shouts, gently grasping at my shoulders, attempting to calm my hysterics. I instinctively curl into him, sobbing my heart out. He rubs my back gently, glancing around the room warily. "Shh, it's okay, you're safe now, shh," he shushes, and my sobs begin to calm into shaky breaths and quiet hiccups.

"Is—is Yuta okay?" I ask shakily, my voice broken. The nurse reaches over to the bedside table, grabbing my phone off it and handing it to me.

"Here, just check," he says softly, and I take the phone from him with a trembling hand. I unlock the phone, and open the messages app. I send Yuta a quick message, realising it's one in the morning, and he probably won't see it until morning.

_I can't wait that long to know if he's okay or not._

I tap the phone icon in the top of the screen, and a ringing sound emits from the phone's speaker. I put the phone to my ear, my hand quivering. He picks up within a few rings, answering with a groggy " _hello_ ".

"Yuta!" I cry, relief flooding my veins at the sound of his voice. "You're okay."

I hear shuffling, and I presume he's sitting up. " _Of_ _course_ _I'm_ _okay_ , _Yong_ ," he pauses, then he speaks with a low tone. " _A_ _nightmare_ _again_?"

"Mhm," I hum, sniffling loudly. I hear him sigh.

" _I'm okay Yong, I’ll be there in the morning, okay?_ " He says, and I nod slowly, humming a small noise of approval. " _Goodnight_ , _Yong_."

"Goodnight," I murmur, and he hangs up. I hand my phone back to the nurse, and he places it on the bedside table again.

"Everything okay now?" The nurse asks quietly, and I nod softly, detaching myself from him. I wipe the tear streaks from my cheeks, sniffling loudly. "Were...any of your friends here tonight?" He then asks, and I look at him with wide, confused eyes.

"No...none of my friends were here," I say lowly, my heart squeezing painfully tight in my chest. The nurse stiffens, standing from the bed and looking away. "Why?" I ask, my voice dangerously low. It was the voice I used against criminals when I was Limitless.

"There...there was someone in here, before you started having your nightmare." The nurse says softly, sternly. I feel my blood run as cold as ice, my eyes blowing wide.

_Could it have been Magnito?_

_No, he doesn't know that I am Limitless._

_Then...who?_

"We thought it was one of your friends until he started...touching you inappropriately," the nurse says. My stomach twists, and I feel bile rising in my throat. "I had run all the way here, hoping to catch whoever it was but they disappeared before I got here."

I turn away, gnawing painfully on my lip. Yuta will probably punch someone when I tell him about this.

 

* * *

 

"Yuta I don't think you should have punched the nurse," I mutter, pressing a cold cloth to Yuta's swollen eye, the boy wincing at the slight pressure. Yuta scowls, leaning back into the hard back of the couch. He crosses his arms over his chest, glaring with his one good eye at the wall. I sit beside him on the couch, gingerly dabbing at his black eye with a damp washcloth.

"They let some random guy into your room and he fucking molests you, and they don't even call the fucking cops!" Yuta shouts, turning to look at me. I frown, running a hand through my hair. 

"I told you, they don't know when or how he got in, and by the time the nurse got to my room, the man had escaped," I say softly, dipping the washcloth into a bowl of cold water on the coffee table, and gently pressing it to Yuta's eye again. He winces again, reaching up to grasp at my wrist.

"Yeah but you got molested, Taeyong," he says, "you were asleep and you're injured, they should have been taking better care of you."

"I personally don't see it as being molested," I say, and he stares at me in shock. "Yeah he touched me a little, but he didn't get far." Yuta lowers our joined hands, letting my hand rest in his upon my thigh.

"I just...I'm scared for you, Yong." He whispers, his voice breaking. I frown sadly, gently cupping his soft cheeks in the palms of my hands. He leans into my touch, his eyes glossing over with tears. He blinks them away, inhaling a shuddering breath. "I can't lose you Taeyong. Not you too."

"I know," I whisper softly, stroking my thumbs tenderly across his cheeks. He places one hand over the top of mine upon his cheek, fingers tangling with mine. He looks so broken, so needy—it just breaks my heart seeing him like this. "I'm not going anywhere, okay?" He nods quickly, finally breaking down into a fit of tears.

My heart clenches tightly, tugging him closer, pressing his head into my chest so I could wrap my arms around his body. He buries his face into my chest, fingers tangling themselves into the fabric of my shirt. My ribs screamed in pain, but Yuta was more important than my ribs. He's hurting, always hurting, and I just seem to play it off as him being overprotective.

"Shh, Yuta, it's okay," I shush gently, carding my fingers through his soft hair soothingly. He starts to calm down, his sobs smoothing out into choked whimpers. "I'm okay, you're okay, nothing bad is going to happen." I whisper, but to be perfectly honest, I was trying to convince myself more than Yuta.

My nightmare last night was vivid, horrifying. I don't remember much of it, only that it ended with me cradling Yuta's lifeless body in my arms.

I hold him closer, burying my nose into his soft hair. "We're okay." I murmur into his hair, and I feel him nod against my chest.

 

* * *

 

The television blares, a stupid reality show playing on it's small screen. I barely pay attention to it, my eyes roaming the pages of the book in my hands. I sit curled up on the lumpy couch, a blanket draped around my body. I reach over to the coffee table, grabbing my water bottle and taking a huge gulp of cold water. My throat was scratchy, dry.

I made Yuta go to school after his breakdown, he's missed enough school as it is, and I know that if he wants to be a teacher, he has to get pretty good grades. I was lonely, but his education was more important than my loneliness.

I resume my reading, not really drinking the words in. The only thing running through my mind was what happened last night. I'm kind of thankful for the nightmare, as it woke me up, and saved me from probably being molested.

I swallow thickly, brushing my fingertips over my jawline, feeling the skin tense under my soft touch. I vaguely remember something touching me here, but it felt like I was being pricked with a shock-pen of some sort. Enough charge to stimulate some kind of reaction, but not enough to actually hurt.

I sigh, closing my book and setting it on the coffee table. I just can't get the whole situation out of my head. Firstly, who let Magnito out and why? Secondly, why was there a man in my hospital room touching me, and was able to enter and escape without going through the door? And thirdly, why was my nightmare about Yuta dying? My nightmares usually involve me dying in some kind of way, not...not him.

Three loud, sharp knocks on the wood of my front door snap me from my thoughts, scattering them askew. I sigh, leaning back into the back of the couch, my ribs groaning in pain.

"It's open," I shout, and the door handle twists, pushing open with a loud creak. I turn my head, and my heart leaps into my throat.

 _Jaehyun_.

My eyes rake in his tall, broad form as he shuts the door behind him, his brown hair glowing yellow from the artificial light of the kitchen. The same flannel from the other night adorns his body, a black skin-tight shirt underneath. Black jeans hug his long, thick legs, white socks on his feet once his shoes were discarded. His dimpled cheeks are slightly red from the cold, eyes sparkling and lips glistening.

_He really is stunning without trying._

I swallow thickly, looking away. "Jaehyun," I say softly, my throat tight. He smiles slightly, walking towards me, seating himself on the single armchair beside the couch. He rests his elbows on his knees, leaning forwards. His fringe falls across his forehead, the strands catching in his long eyelashes. He brushes them back, finally looking at my face.

"You look like shit," he says, gesturing to the bruises on my cheek and scratches across my skin. I scowl, crossing my arms across my chest, ignoring the protest of pain from my ribs.

"I take back every nice thing I just thought about you," I mutter sourly, sticking my bottom lip out in a pout. He laughs, the sound deep and melodic. His eyes crinkle, his lips curling up in the corners in a beautiful smile.

"You thought about me, huh?" He teases, reaching over and poking my knee. "That's dirty, Yong."

I frown, shooting him a glare. "You're dirty, you piece of crap."

He feigns hurt, pressing a hand to his chest. I blink at him, now curious.

"Why aren't you at school?" I ask, and his smile falls, leaning back against the armchair's back.

"I wanted to see you. I'm..." he trails off, swallowing. I watch his Adam's apple bob as he swallows, his broad chest moving slightly with each deep inhale. "I'm sorry I didn't see you in the hospital. I didn't check my phone until this morning, and I had things going on that I had to deal with."

I nod slowly, feeling a little upset. "More important than me?" I blurt without thinking. I clamp my lips shut at the dark look Jaehyun shoots me, linking his fingers together, leaning forwards again and letting his elbows rest on his knees.

"The world is bigger than you, Taeyong," he mutters, and I feel a frown tug into my lips.

"I know that, Jaehyun. I'm just a little hurt, that's all. Even Hansol came to see me." I snap. "Yuta was with me the whole time, too." At the mention of the Japanese male, Jaehyun's eyes narrow dangerously.

"I had family matters going on, okay? It was unavoidable," he says lowly, "and up until yesterday, I didn't even realise that there was a fight between Limitless and an AB."

My voice catches in my throat, and my eyes widen.

He didn't realise there was a fight? But he was there, I saw him!

_Why is he lying?_

"Jaehyun...I saw you at the attack. I went to go get breakfast and a new pan, and when I got injured, I saw you amongst the crowd." I say, and he stiffens, eyes widening. "Yuta also said that you left the apartment not long after I did, looking for me—"

"You must've seen someone else, then," he says, cutting me off. I sigh, and just mutter "whatever", dropping the subject.

Silence fills the apartment like water filling a submarine, drowning us both in it's cold, choking atmosphere. I stare at the television blankly, and out of the corners of my peripherals, I can see Jaehyun staring at me.

I turn to him, scowling. "What?" I snap, and he flinches, blinking rapidly and sitting up straight.

"I've just been wondering something," he says, voice tight.

I tilt my head, "It better not involve my face."

He forces a smile and shakes his head no, "No, what are your thoughts on the experimentation on ABs?"

The question catches me off-guard, and I blink at the suddenness of it. "I..." I choke out, my mouth agape as I try to think of how to answer the question

"I'm guessing, and hoping, that you're against it," Jaehyun says absentmindedly, gazing at me. "Did you know that since 2025, now thirty ABs have been captured and experimented on?"

I just stare at him. It's only been six years, yet they've captured and experimented on thirty ABs? When I discovered I was an AB at nine, in 2022, only eight had been recorded worldwide, including the man that committed the massacre in New York in 2018.

"That...those are recorded ones, yes? Ones captured and experimented on?" I stutter out, my throat tight. He nods, staring at the ground solemnly.

"There are believed to be thousands of ABs worldwide, with only about fifty being recorded altogether, including Limitless and the AB Magnito from the other day." Jaehyun explains. "Out of the fifty recorded, almost forty have been captured and experimented on, and otherwise killed." He then looks at me. "Around 2020, only eight had been recorded, and out of those eight, six were captured and experimented on. That includes the AB that went on a rampage in New York."

I nod slowly, trying to process this new information. "Basically, in the past century, only fifty ABs have been recorded, and that includes Limitless and Magnito, and out of those fifty, about forty have been...tested on..." I trail off, feeling sick to my stomach.

He nods again. "Exactly." He toys with his fingers. "I am very against the experimentation. I mean, they're human...right? Like us?" He stares at me, his eyes big. I frown, tilting my head sadly.

"They are. It's not fair that they're cast to the side and downgraded to lab rats." I say, a sour taste on my tongue. He sighs deeply, broad shoulders sagging.

"When...when I lived in America from 2027 to this year, I saw a lot of bad ABs," he swallows thickly. "And by the end of every fight with the 'hero' AB, they'd let the other ABs get taken away. Get taken away to a lab." He rubs his arm, shuddering softly. "One of my close friends was an AB."

I freeze, staring at him. "Was?" I choke out.

"He...he accidentally used his powers at school and...and the teachers called the PAABS," he inhales shakily. "The PAABS is the 'Protection Against Abnormal People Squad'," he rubs his face with his hands. "I just remember hearing him screaming for me not to let them take him away. He ended up killing our teacher and one of the squad men."

I frown, reaching over and placing my hand on his knee. He flinches, but relaxes at the reassuring squeeze. "I'm sorry Jae," I whisper softly, and he shakes his head, looking at me with huge eyes, glossy with tears. He places his hand over mine, squeezing it tightly back.

"He didn't deserve that. The problem is that he never came back." He exhales shakily. "The PAABS came by his parents house to tell them that he died due to the harsh experimentation." He then grits his teeth, his hand squeezing mine tightly. "His parents didn't care. They were glad to be rid of him, a monster, they called him."

The word strikes a chord with me, my heart stuttering in my chest. I breathe out, my breath trembling.

"I don't agree with it either, Jae. It's inhumane."

"Humans are disgusting creatures," Jaehyun hisses, scowling darkly. His tone was low, dangerous. It was lethal. "All they do is destroy everything they don't understand."

_He has a point—but there are humans that are good, are innocent._

"Not all humans," I whisper, and his shoulders sag.

"I guess not."

Once again, silence. This one was far less tense than the last; a humble silence. I chew my lip, glancing at Jaehyun out the corner of my eyes; he was staring at me. Again. I frown, turning my head to face him completely, tilting my head to one side in confusion.

"Why are you looking at me? Do I have something on my face?" I ask, and he chuckles softly, reaching over to me and gently cupping my cheek. His thumb brushes against my bruise and I flinch back. He frowns, shuffling closer to me.

"I'm sorry," he whispers, tenderly cupping my cheek again, carefully avoiding the bruise. "I was staring because even with these bruises and scratches, you're still absurdly serene."

I choke, my eyes flying wide in shock. My cheeks envelope in a fiery blush, burning red all the way down to my neck. "J-Jaehyun! You—you can't just go and say that!"

Jaehyun cocks his head cutely, smiling his sweet, dimpled smile. "I can, and I did." He gently twirls a piece of my fringe in his fingertips, my eyes trained on the simple movement. "You're cute."

"...thanks," I murmur, pulling away from him, blushing bashfully.

He grins lopsidedly, but doesn't say anything else.

_He really does know how to make me weak._

 

* * *

 

I browse the shelves, searching for chilli flakes. I glance at the different prices of the shakers, and I settle on the cheapest one, dropping it into the shopping basket on my arm. I sigh lowly, glancing at my phone to check my bank balance. I got paid from work this morning, and it wasn't much, but it was enough for groceries. 

Some shouts and items falling over catch my attention, and I walk to the end of the aisle to see two police officers struggling with a rather tall boy with orange hair by the entrance. He was crying, trying to break free.

"I don't understand! I didn't do anything wrong!" He cries, tears streaming down his cute cheeks. I frown, looking outside to see a police car parked right at the entrance. I furrow my brows, concentrating on the car's engine, clenching my jaw. The car shudders to life, the lights flickering on. I flick my wrist slightly, red glowing around my fingertips, forcing the gear stick in the car to shift forwards, pushing the handbrake off. The car begins to roll, and I grin in success. 

I fake a loud gasp and point to the car as it rolls past the window. "Someone is stealing the car!" I cry out, feigning alarm. The cops freeze, and they both shout in distress, leaving the crying boy disoriented as they run outside, dashing after the runaway car.

I quickly dash forwards, grabbing the orange-haired boy by the arm, gently leading him to the back of the store towards the toilets. I set my basket on the ground, pushing open the door and leading the crying boy inside.

"Hey, shh, it's okay now," I whisper soothingly, bringing the boy's face down to hug him to my chest, letting the boy cry into my shirt. He bent awkwardly over me, his nose buried in the middle of my chest.

_What's with people liking crying into my chest?_

After a few moments, the boy calms down, inhaling shakily. He wipes at his eyes, standing straight and towering over me. He smiles weakly, cheeks tinged red. I take a good look at his face, my gaze falling across his cute cheeks and huge eyes.

"Thank you, and sorry about that," he says softly, voice quiet and wobbly. I wave my hand, brushing it off.

"It's okay, the police seemed to have the wrong guy, right?" I say, and he looks away. I tilt my head. "Mind if I ask about it?"

He shakes his head no, "They want to detain me because of my connection to Magnito."

At this, I go rigid. My eyes widen, and he panics.

"N-not as an accomplice! I know his alter-ego," he trails off, staring at the ground. "Well, I thought I knew him."

"What do you mean?" I ask, needing to know more. He hesitates, looking away. "I'm not going to turn you in, okay? I'm here to help." I hold my hand out for him, offering him a kind smile. "My name is Taeyong."

He smiles back, a cute, shy smile, and he slips his large, soft hand into mine. "I'm Jungwoo."

"Okay Jungwoo," I link out fingers together, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "What is your connection with Magnito?" He sighs, eyes glossing over with tears.

_Ah, soft._

"He...his name is Wong Yukhei, and he's my ex-boyfriend." He says quietly, squeezing my hand tightly. My eyebrows shoot up in shock, my mouth falling agape.

"Magnito...he's your ex?" I ask, flabbergast. He nods shyly, cheeks dusting in pink.

"Mhm," Jungwoo hums, "he and I had been dating for a while until earlier this year..." he swallows nervously. "I've always known he was an AB, but last year he just...he went haywire."

This matches up perfectly with Magnito's appearance; as he only appeared in about September last year.

"What happened?" I question, and he exhales shakily.

"One night, he climbs into my bedroom window, covered in blood," he wipes at his eyes with his free hand, sniffling softly. "He said he killed someone because they said some bad things to him. About ABs. That's what broke him, after that, he became Magnito and he would fight Limitless constantly." He takes a shuddering breath. "He'd always come to my place, battered and bruised. I never told anyone because I knew he'd be taken away and tested on and...I didn't want him to get hurt."

_Understandable._

"But it got too much...so I broke up with him," Jungwoo murmurs, "I broke up with him just before he was detained by the police after another fight with Limitless."

"Oh, Jungwoo, I'm sorry," I whisper, gently cradling his slightly chubby face in my bony hands. He sniffles softly, staring down at me with large eyes.

"I still love him, hyung. So much." His voice cracks, "But he...I can't do this with him anymore."

"I understand." I gingerly wipe his tears with my thumbs, smudging them into his soft, tinged red cheeks

"But...the other day just before the altercation between him and Limitless, he came for me." Jungwoo says, staring down at me in fright. "He came to my job dressed as Magnito and attacked the store, angry at me for breaking his heart." He dryly sobs, and I can hear his heart cracking piece by piece. "He dragged me out of the store with a street sign wrapped around me and screamed at me. He got angry at me then and threw a car."

_Ah, so that was the car that almost hit me._

"He let me down though once I started crying, and when he saw Limitless, I'm guessing." Jungwoo swallows thickly, lips moist. "Hyung I don't want him hurt but he hurt me so badly the other day and I just..." he exhales with a trembling breath.

"I know, I know," I whisper, gently wiping his tears away again. "Listen, everything will be alright, okay?" I say softly. I open my mouth to speak, but I close it again.

"How do you know? You can't promise that he and I will both be okay." He whimpers, his soft voice broken like glass.

_Should I tell him?_

I inhale through my nose, and look up into his huge eyes. "Jungwoo, I'm going to tell you something and you must promise not to tell anyone."

His eyes widen, making them even bigger. He nods slowly, pressing his lips together into a line. "Okay."

"I'll make sure he'll be okay because I am Limitless."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyo wassup bitches I is back with the quickest update you'll ever get from me in a lifetime. So a lot happened in this chapter but eh it's still pretty shitty. Anyways enjoy Jungwoo's character and some yutae and jaeyong uwu And NOW SOME LUWOO HEHEHE.  
> Also I will fix up errors and italics shit when I get onto a laptop, I’m doing this from my iPad and AO3 hates my iPad sooooo....  
> Fun fact: This story was originally going to be yutae, hence why there are so many yutae moments.  
> Enjoy~~
> 
> \- Kenny xx


	8. we all live for the day

**Taeyong**

" _I'll make sure he'll be okay because I am Limitless_."

Those simple yet catastrophically powerful words tumble from my lips before I could really think about the consequence. My eyes widen, mirroring Jungwoo's own as my words hit him like a ton of bricks. His irises look like marbles, round and dark, glinting small flecks of light scattered around the dilated pupil. His mouth falls open in shock, jaw slack. He opens and closes his agape mouth, mimicing a fish. No sounds emit from his lips, and the silence blanketed us like a thick layer of snow.

I cast my gaze to the ground, toeing at it as the air escapes my lungs in soft breaths. It stays silent for a good minute or so, the new information still sinking in, processing in Jungwoo's brain. I raise my gaze; he's still looking at me.

"Well?" I ask, now slightly impatient.

"You're...you can't be..." he manages to get out, voice quiet. I roll my eyes, crossing my arms across my chest.

"I, Lee Taeyong, am the AB Limitless." I flick my fingertips, red floating around the tips of my fingers. The very same red engulfs Jungwoo's left hand, and I beckon him closer using my fingers. My telekinesis tugs his arm forwards, stumbling into me.

"B-but you look so normal..." he chokes out, gathering himself and standing straight. I shrug, leaning against the door of the bathroom.

"Yukhei, without his mask on, looks normal too, right?" I ask, and at the mention of his ex's name, his eyes widen slightly. He hesitates for a few moments, but then slowly nods. "So why am I any different?"

He finally looks me in the eye, lips once again agape. "Y-you're not any different, hyung!" He then backtracks, "...w-well, you _are_ 'cause you're an AB but a good one, you're not like Xux—I mean, Yukhei, and w-well I—"

I shake my head, grinning slightly at his blabbering mess. I reach up and place my bonny hand over his soft lips, silencing him. His eyes widen comically, and he leaps back from me, tripping over himself in the process. Before he can hit the ground, however, I use my powers to catch him mid-fall, misty red floating around his body. He stares in shock at the telekinesis, still not believing what his eyes were clearly seeing.

"Believe me now?" I ask, smirking slightly, reaching a hand out to him to help him up. He nods dumbly, taking my hand in his. I heave him to his feet, and god, he is a lot heavier than he looks.

"Uhm...hyung?" He asks softly, voice wavering. He looks nervous again, his eyes once again brimming with tears. "I...can I stay with you?" I blink dumbly, not really understanding what on earth Jungwoo meant by "stay".

"What do you mean?" I voice my thoughts aloud, and he shyly looks away.

"I...I'm worred that Yukhei will attack me again, or the police will come after me again and..." he swallows a sob, his breath shuddering. "I don't really want to be alone anymore. Not while I'm dealing with him."

I tilt my head to one side, frowning sadly at him. He reminds me of a kicked puppy—big eyes and big heart, loves anything that shows one ounce of interest towards it, and will continue to love even when it is kicked into the ground. It was sad, honestly, and not in a pathetic way. Jungwoo was only young, the same age as Ten and Jaehyun I believe, or at least a year younger. He's gone through so much because of the faults of another person. It's not fair. Not one bit.

Jungwoo gazes at me with such pain-filled eyes it breaks my heart. His lower lip wobbles, and he takes it in his teeth to try and cease the wobbling. I take him into my arms again, the taller once again awkwardly bending so he could bury his face into my chest. I run my bony fingers through his soft orange hair, shushing him gently.

"I don't want to hurt anymore, hyung," he sobs brokenly, voice muffled by the fabric of my shirt. "But I don't want him to hurt anymore either. I want to save him but it hurts so bad!" Now, he wails, clutching at my shirt as though his life depended on it.

And honestly, by this point I think it does.

"Shh, it's okay Jungwoo," I shush gently, my voice low and as soft as silk. "You can stay with me. You'll be safe with me."

He sniffles, exhaling shakily, then, "You promise?"

My eyes widen at those two little words the younger uttered. I hesitate briefly, but in the end, "I promise." I say.

Silence. Then he speaks once more. "And Yukhei? You promise he'll be okay, too?"

I stay silent, just slowly nodding my head and continuously threading my fingers through his hair soothingly. He takes my silence as a 'yes', and he smiles into my shirt, feeling at peace with himself.

But I don't promise him Yukhei will be okay. I _can't_ promise Yukhei will be okay. I can't save a boy that I know, deep down, is too far gone to ever be rescued.

 

* * *

 

" _Tadaima!_ " Yuta shouts from the doorway. I peer over at him from my spot on the couch, Adventure Time playing on the television.

"How many times have I told you that I don't know what the hell that means?" I say, a slight teasing tone to my voice. Yuta pokes his tongue out at me in a playful gesture, then he freezes. His gaze lands on the orange-haired Jungwoo sitting beside me on the couch, cuddled up to my side.

"Yong, who's that?" He asks in a low voice, and I sigh softly. Jungwoo raises his head from off my shoulder, looking over at Yuta. He quickly scrambles to his feet and bows to Yuta in greeting.

"H-hello hyung, m-my name is Jungwoo." The orange-haired boy stutters out, voice shaking. Clearly, nerves were attacking his confidence once again. Yuta shoots me a look, one of confusion and distaste. Sighing again, I stand to my feet.

"Jungwoo, just go to my bedroom for a few minutes, okay? I just have to...discuss something with dear Yuta here." I say, albeit a little sourly. Jungwoo nods quickly, scampering off to the bedroom. I wait until I hear the door click shut before I speak again, "What's your fucking problem, Yuta?"

Yuta looks severely taken aback by this, eyes blowing wide like saucers and his mouth falling agape in shock. "What...what's _my_ fucking problem? What's _yours_?" He hisses. "Why is a random kid from our school here? He's like in the same year as Ten!"

_Ah, so I was right._

"I met him today at the grocery store."

"You weren't supposed to leave here! You're still injured from your fight with Magnito and what if he had attacked again while you were out? Huh?" He scowls angrily. "You're in _no_ shape _whatsoever_ to face him, or any criminal for that matter!" Yuta pokes at my chest roughly, my ribs throbbing at the harsh poke. "So what is _he_ doing here? Is he an accomplice of Magnito or something?"

I blink, "Well, not exactly."

He blanches at my words. " _What?!_ "

I sigh irritably, rubbing my temple. "Would you shut up for a minute so I can fucking _explain_ what is going on?" I growl, and he huffs.

"No, why should I?" Yuta crosses his arms and stomps his foot childishly, and I feel a vein in my forehead twitch.

"For fucks sake," I grumble, my hand glowing red. I flick my wrist, his body engulfing in the glowing red wisps. He freaks out as I move his body over to the small couch, dumping him on it. He glares angrily at me, arms still folded. "Quit acting like a fucking child, Nakamoto Yuta." Yuta glares, but otherwise stays quiet. "Now, as I was saying before you so _rudely_ interrupted me: I met Jungwoo at the grocery store this morning," I pause, "before you ask why I was there, I was buying groceries because we're out of food, and I don't want to waste money on takeaway every night."

He nods once, his glare settling slightly.

"Anyway, there was a confrontation going on in the store when I was there," I continue, and Yuta looks up at me with wide eyes. "Not involving an AB, but involving police. Two police officers were trying to arrest Jungwoo. I knew I had recognised him from somewhere, turns out it was school, but anyway I got the cops to abandon trying to arrest Jungwoo and I took him into the bathroom at the back of the store where he had a massive breakdown." I explain, recounting every major detail I could remember. It only happened this morning but my memory is not the best when it comes to remembering events.

"Why did you stop the police from arresting him?" Yuta questions, raising an eyebrow.

"He kept yelling that he didn't understand why they were arresting him and that he did nothing wrong, and I felt somehow that this boy was telling the truth so...I aided him in getting the police to go away." I shrug one shoulder.

"You 'felt' that he was telling the truth?" Yuta queries, a little adamant. I nod.

"Yeah, don't ask, I don't know myself." I mumble. "Anyway," I continue, "when he had calmed down he had told me he did know why the police were after him." I inhale deeply, staring down at Yuta with a hard gaze. "Whatever you do, do _not_ blow up. Got it?"

"What? Why would I blow up?"

Again, I inhale deeply. He was gonna blow up. "The police wanted to detain him because of his connection with Magnito."

Silence. The information was sinking in, much alike how the information about me being Limitless had to process with Jungwoo.

Then, " _What do you mean his 'connection' with Magnito?!_ " Yuta shouts, completely blowing up. He stands from the couch, balled fists clenched at his sides. I wince, sighing loudly in irritation.

"I _told_ you not to blow up!" I groan, flicking my wrist, sending him falling back into the couch. He scowls, and I just rub my temple with my fingertips. "God, you piss me off, Yuta."

"I'm just worried about you, dickhead!" Yuta snaps, and I frown.

"I'm _fine_ , Yuta."

"You weren't when you were in hospital! Or when I found you unconscious with blood spewing from your mouth, with broken ribs and fractured bones." He counters, and I look away.

"I know, and I'm sorry for making you worry so much. But really, just listen to me and you'll see why I brought Jungwoo home." I whisper, and Yuta exhales loudly, cooling himself off. He leans into the back of the couch, gesturing for me to continue. "Thank you. Now, when he said that, I had panicked. But he said his connection wasn't with Magnito, but rather with his alter-ego, Wong Yukhei. The two used to date until Yukhei went crazy."

"They...used to date?" Yuta asks, eyes wide. I nod slowly.

"Jungwoo said that one day in September last year, which aligns perfectly with my first interaction with Magnito, Yukhei had returned back to Jungwoo's place covered in blood, saying that he had killed someone for saying bad things about ABs." I shudder, remembering the look of pure fear strewn across Jungwoo's soft features when he told me earlier. "Then Yukhei emerged as Magnito, vowing to kill every human, excluding Jungwoo. After altercations with me, Yukhei would go back to Jungwoo's home bruised and battered."

Yuta stays silent, but when I finish speaking, he looks up at me. "Why didn't he tell anyone who Magnito—Yukehi, was?"

I look down. "Because Jungwoo still loved Yukhei a lot, and he didn't want the authorities to hand him over to the PAABs."

"Oh," was all Yuta could say.

"But Jungwoo said it got too much for him, and only recently, he broke up with Yukhei, telling him he didn't love him anymore and that he was crazy. Or, something like that," I say, "That was just before my fight with him the other day. Not the one where you had to come get me, the one where I thought he had been taken away."

Yuta's eyes widen.

"But clearly, someone had let him out. And when they did, he went after Jungwoo, which then lead into my last confrontation with him." I say softly, "Yukhei was mad at Jungwoo for breaking up with him and even went to his work as Magnito, forcefully taking Jungwoo out of the store using a piece of metal wrapped around him."

Yuta looks down, "The poor kid."

"Jungwoo asked me if he could stay with me. He's scared that Yukhei will find him and hurt him again, and he's afraid the cops will come after him, too. So...he's here with me now. We're going to go collect his things from his house soon." I explain, then I inhale deeply. "Yuta, he knows. About me. I told him."

Silence.

"Don't you dare blow up again or so help me," I mutter. He looks at me, eyes wide.

"Why would you tell a complete stranger about you? That...how do you know we can trust him?" He stands to his feet, speaking a whole lot calmer than I thought he would.

"I just...I just do." I say, placing my hands on my hips. "Yuta, he's a boy who's scared for his life and Yukhei's. What was I supposed to do?"

Yuta bites his lip, looking down.

"Exactly." I mumble. "Now, Jungwoo, you can come back out." I call, and my bedroom door creaks open. Jungwoo shyly walks down the hall, head bowed with his orange fringe hiding his eyes. "Now, Jungwoo, meet the grumpy-ass, Yuta."

Yuta scowls at me, but holds his hand out to Jungwoo. The younger looks at it, glancing at me warily. I nod, smiling slightly. He takes Yuta's hand in his, shaking it gently.

"I'm Kim Jungwoo." He says quietly. Yuta shoots me a look, and I nod in encouragement.

"The name is Nakamoto Yuta." He introduces, flashing a small smile.

"You're Japanese?" Jungwoo asks, taking his hand back. "Do you like anime?"

Yuta sets his jaw, glaring slightly. He hates it when people ask him that. "Just 'cause I'm Japanese does _not_ mean I watch anime!" He mutters, and Jungwoo's face falls.

"Oh, I was just asking since I love Boku no Hero Academia." Jungwoo says quietly, and then Yuta's face lights up.

"You do?" He asks, now interested. "I do watch anime, I just usually say that if people ask if I watch yaoi or hentai or some shit like that." Yuta grins apologetically. "Is it only BNHA you're into or are there more anime you're into?" He steps forwards and wraps an arm around the taller's shoulders, poking at Jungwoo's rounded cheek.

At this, Jungwoo visibly relaxes, smiling gently. "I'm into more anime, yeah. And I have since I was young. My favourite anime is Tokyo Ghoul." Jungwoo grins. "But I hate Root A. That sucked so bad."

Yuta's eyes just shine, and he grabs Jungwoo and drags him onto the couch. The two begin to talk, and I'm glad. Yuta seems to like Jungwoo, which is a good thing. Yuta didn't particularly like accepting people into his life so quickly, but Jungwoo seems to be an exception. I mean, Jungwoo was able to make me trust him in a matter of minutes, which was extremely odd yet endearing.

I don't really know how or why I just knew Jungwoo wasn't bad or untrustworthy, but it was like there was a little voice in the back of my head just telling me that he wasn't bad. It sounded much like Jungwoo, the boy akin to a puppy with wide eyes and adorable loopy smile.

There was something special about Jungwoo, something unique.

 _You can trust me, hyung._ Was what was in my head when I met him. It was Jungwoo. In my head.

Confused, I sit on the single armchair beside Yuta, watching the two boys fondly as they discuss whether to watch Haikyuu or Kuroko no Basuke.

 

* * *

 

"Wait, since when did you become friends with Jungwoo?" Ten asks, eyeing the taller male seated on the grass beside me. I take a big bite out of my sandwich, shrugging my shoulders. Ten sits on Johnny's lap, leaning back against the older's front.

 _Do they know?_ Comes that voice again. I've been hearing it for the past week, and honestly it's been confusing me thoroughly all week. I don't know how or why I'm hearing Jungwoo's voice in my head but I am and it was odd.

Jungwoo glances at me, eyes wide. I shake my head once, so the younger would know that no, Ten nor the others did not know about my being Limitless. He looks back at Ten, also shrugging.

"We met at the grocery store and I recognised him as one of my hyungs from school." He explains, and Ten seems to buy it, nodding once and leaning back into Johnny, resting his head on the older's shoulder.

Yuta leans into my side, drawing small circles on my thigh with his fingertip absentmindedly. Jungwoo has been living with us for a week now, and he's been sleeping in Yuta's bed while Yuta and I share mine. Jungwoo really has wormed his way into our hearts this past week with his shy but cute personality and odd flirting now and then.

Jaehyun sits across from me, his gaze never leaving Jungwoo as the younger happily munches on his food, conversing now and then with Yuta and I. I ignore the conversation between the two (they were chatting about Prince of Stride anyway), and solely focus on Jaehyun.

The world around me seems to blur, my eyes only seeing him clearly. His chocolate eyes widen when he realises I'm staring at him, and he looks away, cheeks pink. I smile a little, resting my chin on my hand, elbow resting on my thigh. I continue to stare at Jaehyun, my gaze carefully tracing over every detail of his handsome face.

_Huh, he has a small freckle on his cheek. That's cute._

I smile lopsidedly, and at the corner of my eye, I see Yuta scowling. He wraps his arms around my upper arm, squeezing tightly. I turn my attention away from Jaehyun (who has now returned his attention to me), to look down at Yuta.

"What're you being so clingy for?" I ask, raising my eyebrows. He pouts, staying quiet and hugging my arm tighter. I roll my eyes, subtly glancing at Jaehyun. The younger was aggressively sipping his juice popper, cheeks hallowed as he sucks at the straw. I snicker, reaching up to scratch the back of my neck.

 _They're both jealous._ The voice speaks again. I look at Jungwoo from the corner of my eye, and he's staring at his hands, before he raises his gaze to meet mine. He quirks a small smile, running a hand through his orange hair. _You look so freaked out_. And again. My eyes widen, and he just frowns at me, raising a finger to his lips in a hushing motion.

"What're you two doing?"

I jump, and Yuta knocks his head on my jaw from the sharp, sudden motion. We both groan simultaneously, my hand rubbing my jaw and his hand rubbing his head. I shoot a glare at Hansol, moving my jaw to make sure it wasn't broken by Yuta's hard head.

"What do you mean what am I doing?" I ask, irate. Hansol shrugs, resting his chin on his hand, legs crossed beneath him.

"You and Yuta look like a couple," he mutters sourly, and this time Yuta shoots him a glare.

"Well we _do_ live together~" he teases, reaching up to pinch my cheek. I shy away, my cheeks burning red. "Aw darling don't you like that?" He coos playfully. I send him a dark glare, slapping his hand away.

"God you're insufferable." I mutter.

"You love me!" He grins, his smile bright. I find myself smiling too, snickering at him.

"Yeah, luckily for you."

Hansol gags, pretending to choke. "God, you're both worse than Johnten here," he gestured to the two males making out beside him. "And they're full on sucking each other's faces off."

Yuta pokes his tongue out at Hansol, shifting so he no longer leans against me, leaning his back against the tree behind us instead. "You're annoying, ruining my cuddle session with Yongie here."

I laugh a bit, until my eyes land on Jaehyun. Said male has gone as silent as the grave, his are trained solely on me. He hugs his knees to his chest, his knuckles white as they clutch at his wrists. He looks angry, his jaw set and gaze hard. His eyes weren't even on my face, they were focussed on my chest.

I swallow thickly, feeling a little on-edge by Jaehyun's scary gaze. I reach forwards and nudge his knee with my hand, snapping him from his death-glaring contest with my chest. He blinks a few times, loosening his grip from around his knees.

"Hm? What?" He asks, confused. His voice was slightly raspy and quiet. He sounds a little on-edge, which is unusual for him.

"You okay? You seem...angry." I murmur, concerned. He forces a small smile, shaking his head.

"I'm fine, I was just thinking. Sorry." He mutters.

Ten snorts, now done making out with Johnny. His pink lips are red and swollen from sucking on Johnny's lips for the past few minutes, pupils blown wide and cheeks bright red. "Yeah, thinking about Taeyong." He says loudly.

Yuta shoots Ten a nasty look, as does Jaehyun. I shoot him a small glare for not using 'hyung', but I'm not too picky.

Ten looks at them both, moving so he sits beside Johnny now. "What? You all know I'm right." He tilts his head. "Jaehyun's literally been eyeing Taeyong's flat ass since he got back."

"Hey! My ass isn't flat!" I completely ignore the first part of that sentence, firing back at the younger Thai male about the jab at my ass.

Hansol snorts, and both Johnny and Yuta burst out laughing.

"Your ass is so flat, a plane could land on it." Johnny wheezes. My cheeks burn, and I throw my apple core at him. He dodges it with ease, guffawing.

"It is not! Shut up!" I shout, embarrassed.

"It's like when that old dude had grabbed your ass, cause honestly, what ass could he have possibly grabbed?" Hansol quips in, hiding his shit-eating grin behind his hand. I splutter, grabbing Yuta's uneaten apple and pegging it at Hansol. It hits the bastard right in the cheek, and he rubs his sore cheek with a pout on his lips. "Bitch that hurt."

"Not as much as Taeyong's bony ass if he sits on your lap," Yuta pipes up, joining in on the harassment. I elbow him roughly, glaring daggers at him.

"God, you're all _awful_." I groan loudly.

Jaehyun looks at me, eyes wide. " _I'm_ not awful, _I_ wasn't saying anything." He says. I look at him, blinking.

"Well, that's true." I murmur. I hear Ten snicker again, and I look over at him with wide eyes.

"Oh, he's awful alright. I know what he wants to do with that flat ass of yours—" Ten is cut off as Jaehyun leaps across our little circle to press a hand to the smaller male's mouth. Jaehyun's face has gone bright red, his eyes wide.

"Shut up, Chittaphon!" He hisses, his ears burning a deep red colour. I reach out and pinch his left ear, the younger letting out a high-pitch whine. He turns to look at me, removing his hand from Ten's mouth and placing his hand over his ear in embarrassment. "H-hyung!" He squeaks.

God, with his red cheeks and wide eyes staring at me like he was, he really reminded me of a cute puppy.

Jungwoo nudges me, and I look at him. "I feel a little nauseous, hyung, I'm just going to go to the bathroom." I frown and nod, telling him to text me if he feels any worse. He agrees, and then he stands and walks across the field into the main school building. I watch him go, feeling a little concerned.

Yuta taps my thigh, and I turn to gaze at him. "Is Jungie okay?" He asks, a little worried. I nod.

"Yeah, he just said he's feeling a little sick in the stomach, so he's going to the bathroom." I answer. Yuta gazes after Jungwoo who just disappeared inside the building, a frown tugged into his lips.

"I hope he's okay," he murmurs quietly.

"So," I hear Ten say. Yuta and I both look at the Thai boy, and he's staring at us in slight confusion. "Why is Jungwoo living with you guys again? You never really explained."

"Uh..." Yuta has nothing. And neither do I.

Johnny elbows Ten roughly in the gut. "Oi, it might be private, so you shouldn't ask that."

Ten eyes Johnny, frowning. "Yeah, but they didn't know him a week ago and now he's living with them all of a sudden. And why?"

I roll my eyes. "It's none of your business, Ten. Plus, Yuta and I trust Jungwoo."

"Yeah, and you don't trust me!" Ten snaps, and Johnny grabs his arm, whispering at him to calm down. "You don't tell me anything!"

I scowl. "I don't have to do anything. I don't tell Johnny or Hansol or Jaehyun everything, so what makes you different?" I mutter, and Ten fumes.

"And why is that? We're friends aren't we? Aren't friends meant to trust each other?" He yells, cheeks going red in anger. I frown.

"Of course we are friends, and I do trust you, but there are some things that I prefer to only tell Yuta." I explain, trying to keep my voice calm.

"And Jungwoo." Ten snaps.

Yuta shoots a glare at Ten. "Why are you getting so riled up?" He asks in irate.

"You've never let me come over to your apartment, yet you've let Jaehyun _and_ Jungwoo, and they've only just joined the group!" He exclaims, eyes wide. "That just kind of shows you don't trust me!"

"I've been there once," Hansol pipes in, but silences at the dark glare Ten shoots his way. He holds his hands up in surrender, staying quiet. Johnny grabs at Ten's arm, frowning.

"Ten, calm down. I tell you certain things that I don't tell them, this is no different." He explains softly. "You're not making this better for yourself."

Ten huffs, curling up into Johnny's side, not saying another word. Yuta and I exchange a look, highly confused to what on earth just took place. Jaehyun sighs, now sitting beside me. He leans against my side, red lips against my ear.

"Ten was right about one thing, though. And I'm sure you can guess what about." He whispers, his voice velvety, tickling the lobe of my ear. I shudder, turning my head away from him. I feel his teeth nip at the lobe of my ear, and I squeak in response. Jaehyun pulls away, smirking. I shoot him a glare, my hand over my bitten ear. He just shrugs, his smirk widening.

"Pervert," I mutter, slapping his arm. Jaehyun opens his mouth to speak, but loud screams from the main school building interrupt him.

All six of our heads snap up to look at the building, seeing students pushing each other out of the way as a crowd of teenagers rush out of the door. We all stand to our feet, shooting each other concerned looks. We all grab our bags, rushing over to the front of the school where all the students gathered, teachers shouting and trying to calm hysterical and screaming students.

Our principal is standing just outside of the crowd of students, on the phone to what was presumably the police. He's panicked, and I walk closer to him to try and hear what he was saying over the sound of students screaming.

"Yes! It's Magnito! He has one of our students hostage!"

My heart drops into my feet, my breath leaving my lungs in small wheezes. I turn away from the principal, shoving through students to find Yuta who was standing off to the side with the others. Yuta looks at me in worry, grabbing my shoulder gently.

"Taeyong, what's wrong? What the fuck is going on?" He asks, panicked. It takes me a few moments to breathe, my words coming out in choked pants.

"It's Jungwoo. Magnito's got him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp I shall end this here cause I'm a bitch. Sorry this has taken so damn long, well, I haven't updated a lot of my stories since like November last year so like...yeah. Anyway Ribbon will be updated next, followed by Might Just Die and My Page. Or Only You, so I can get that out of the way. Ugh, I hate myself. Always starting stories and not updating them for months lmao
> 
> Also, I just wanna say something. Recently, I haven't been in the right place mentally. The other week, I was in fact suicidal and I had a massive breakdown at work. This is why I haven't been updating, and why my stories are gonna be angstier than usual. Thanks to my friends for your support, you know who you are. 
> 
> So... I hope y'all enjoyed.  
> Love, Kenny x


	9. they'll be screaming our names

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hyung, you can trust me. He said. Taeyong looked confused, but let Jungwoo continue on. When he broke down again, Taeyong gladly took the boy into his arms, soothing and calming him until he could breathe again. Then he told Jungwoo something that he certainly was not expecting. 
> 
> "I'll make sure he'll be okay because I am Limitless."

**_February, 2028_ **

_"Don't talk to him, he's Chinese."_

_"He's so weird."_

_"He looks weird."_

_"Why is his name so weird?"_

_Weird, weird, weird. That's all he was to everyone. Weird. Just because he was from Hong Kong and spoke limited Korean. Just because he liked metal. Just because he was tall. Weird. Weird. Weird. Everything about him was weird._

_Yukhei knew he was weird, but he kept that weird part of himself a secret, only for his knowledge. He loved metal so much because he could_ control _it. He knew people like him were weird, that they weren't wanted in this world. He knew what humans did to people like him, so of course he'd keep his powers a secret._

_Sitting alone on the grass, Yukhei watched the other kids playing together on the field, laughing and giggling with each other. He bit his lip, toying around with the metal coins in his hands, bending them at will into little shapes._

You look lonely.

_Yukhei's head snapped up, eyes blowing wide. He looked up and around, wondering who spoke. There was nobody near him, but he did notice a boy with light brown hair watching him from afar with huge eyes. Tilting his head, the boy looked sad, beckoning Yukhei with his hand._

Come sit with me.

_Yukhei was astounded. The boy was talking to him in Mandarin. Yukhei's native tongue was Cantonese, but he did know Mandarin as well, and he was shocked that the boy could speak Mandarin. He was even more shocked that the boy was talking to him from all the way over there._

_Confused, Yukhei stood, walking over to the cute boy who sat by himself under a tree. The boy sent him a cute smile, patting the grass beside him. Yukhei sat, staring at the boy with wide eyes._

_"Sorry if I scared you, my name is Jungwoo." He introduced, smiling so big his eyes turned into cute crescents. "I'm in the year above you."_

_Yukhei just blinked, still confused. "You...you're thirteen?"_

_"Mhm." Jungwoo grinned._

_"You speak Mandarin?"_

_"I taught myself."_

_"You can talk to me in my head?"_

_Jungwoo paused, but nodded anyway. "You're like me, right?"_

_Yukhei just stared. "What do you mean?" He panicked._

_"An AB. Like me."_

_Yukhei's eyes widened even more than before, looking away. Jungwoo placed his hand on Yukhei's knee, smiling gently. Yukhei was in shock; someone like him. Someone weird...like him._

_"You...you're weird?" Yukhei asked, voice quiet. Jungwoo giggled, but nodded._

_"You could say that."_

 

* * *

 

**_March, 2030_ **

_"Will you go out with me?" Yukhei held the flowers out to the smaller male, down on one knee on the ground. Everyone in the hallway turned to look at Yukhei and Jungwoo, whispering and snickering. Yukhei's ears went red, his palms sweating around the stems of the flowers. Yukhei coughed, looking only at a blushing Jungwoo. "Will you, Kim Jungwoo, go out with me?"_

_Silence, and Yukhei started to sweat, now nervous. He looked down, not noticing how Jungwoo smiled, taking the flowers and inhaling their pretty scent. He nodded._

_"Of course, Wong Yukhei."_

_Yukhei stood to his feet, shouting loudly in glee. He wrapped his arms around the sixteen-year-old boy, lifting him into his arms and spinning him around. It was March, 25th, 2030. A day Yukhei would never forget._

I love you, Zeus. _Yukhei grinned, kissing Jungwoo gently on the lips. The older giggled at the cute nickname; everything was perfect._

_That is, until it wasn't._

 

* * *

 

**_Early September, 2030_ **

Babe, open the door for me. _It was Yukhei. Confused, Jungwoo stood from his bed and walked out of his bedroom, wandering down to the back door where he could see the silhouette of Yukhei behind the glass. Jungwoo walked to unlock the metal lock, sliding open the glass door, letting the taller inside._

Why didn't you just unlock it yourself? _Jungwoo asked, quietly shutting the door behind his boyfriend, as to not awaken his sleeping parents. Then, he stopped dead. Yukhei stood there, tilting his head down to look at the slightly smaller male, and from the dim light of the moon shining in from outside, Jungwoo could see red drenching Yukhei's skin. His hair. His clothes._

_Yukhei was saturated in blood._

_Panicking, Jungwoo grabbed Yukhei's arm, dragging him to the bathroom. Jungwoo carefully closed the door behind them, flicking on the light. He set Yukhei to lean on the edge of the basin while he ran the water in the bath._

Strip, now. _Jungwoo instructed, and Yukhei obeyed._ What happened?

 _Silence, then,_ I took care of something.

_Jungwoo turned to look up at his boyfriend as he slipped his bloody shirt off. He dropped it to the tiled floor with a loud squelch, then his pants followed. Jungwoo looked away, flushing as the younger stepped into the bath. Immediately, the blood began to dissipate in the water, turning it red. Jungwoo grabbed a cloth, washing Yukhei down carefully, looking for where his wounds were._

_There were none._

_Jungwoo froze, eyes widening unnaturally wide. He stared at Yukhei, sitting up straight._

Xuxi...whose blood is this? _he asked, his hands beginning to quiver. Yukhei looked at him, a blank look in his eyes._ There are no wounds. This isn't your blood. Whose is it?

_Yukhei stood up, lunging for Jungwoo. The older let out a small scream as his boyfriend pinned him to the tiled floor of the bathroom. Jungwoo squirmed, but Yukhei held him in place. The younger held a long, thin finger to his lips, shushing him quietly._

_"Your parents are asleep. Wouldn't want to wake them, now do we?" Now Yukhei spoke aloud._

_"Whose blood is that?!" Jungwoo hissed, slapping the younger's hand away. "Tell me right now, Yukhei!"_

_Yukhei bristled, not used to hearing his birth name come from Jungwoo's lips. "I just taught him a lesson. He was saying ABs belong in a lab. That that was what they were here for. He was wrong. So I wrapped a long strip of metal around him, squeezing him until he popped." Yukhei made an explosion gesture with his hand, a crazed look glistening in his eyes. "It felt so good to kill him. He is filth. Treating people like me, like us, like we are the filth."_

_Jungwoo could only stare in shock, his voice caught in his throat. Yukhei didn't actually...kill someone, did he?_

_No, no. This was a nightmare. His Xuxi would never hurt anyone. No one. Right...?_

_"Why so quiet, Zeus?" Yukhei tilted his head to one side, pursing his pretty plush lips slightly. "I thought you'd be proud of me for wiping out filth. All humans are filth. They all deserve to die like him."_

_Now, Jungwoo found his voice. He shoved Yukhei back, the older's back colliding with the wall of the bathtub. He grunted in pain, glaring daggers at Jungwoo. Never had Jungwoo seen such malice in Yukhei's eyes. Never had Yukhei ever glared at him._

_"N-no! Of course I'm not proud! You want to kill innocent people!" Jungwoo cried, tears slipping down his cheeks before he could stop them. "What about your parents? Or my parents? Or our friends?"_

_Yukhei tipped his head back and laughed. He laughed. It was maniacal, crazy._

_"My parents know I'm an AB. They call me a monster. They want nothing to do with me." Yukhei grinned bitterly. "Your parents don't know, do they? They'd probably hate you too if they knew," Jungwoo's heart splintered. "And_ our _friends? They're_ your _friends. They all hate me. They can die too." He giggled, getting on all fours, crawling over to Jungwoo._

_Now at this point in time, Jungwoo didn't care that Yukhei was naked, he just wanted his boyfriend to get away from him. He wanted this nightmare to end. Jungwoo scrambled back on his hands and feet, terrified. His back hit the bathroom door, and his heart dropped._

_"Oh, and Limitless can die too. He saves filth. He must be filth too." Yukhei reached up with one bloody hand to caress Jungwoo's cheek, smudging red into his soft skin. "Don't cry baby, I'll create a world where you and I can live in happiness. In peace."_

_For the first time in his life, Jungwoo was scared of Yukhei._

 

* * *

 

**_Late October, 2030_ **

_Battered and bruised, Yukhei dropped onto Jungwoo's carpeted floor in pain. He held his throbbing arm, laying on the ground as he tried to regain his senses. He tore his metallic mask off his face, his nose bloodied and lip bruised. Jungwoo stayed sitting in his desk chair, not even turning to look at Yukhei._

Honey, I'm hurt. Can you pretty please get me an ice-pack? _Yukhei asked, knowing that Jungwoo's parents were home. Jungwoo huffed, continuing to type away at his computer._ Zeus! _Yukhei whined. Once again, Jungwoo ignored him. Pouting, Yukhei stood, stumbling over to the computer chair, spinning it so Jungwoo faced him._

 _The older male glared at him, frowning._ What do you want, Yukhei? _He asked in a low, annoyed tone._ I'm trying to do my school work.

Aw, schoolwork is no fun at all, Zeus! _Yukhei whined, grinning slightly. Jungwoo only glared further, spinning in his seat so he faced away from Yukhei again. Yukhei frowned, now annoyed. He grabbed the back of the chair again, spinning it so Jungwoo once again faced the taller. He held the arms of the chair tightly so that the smaller could not move the chair again._ What the fuck is wrong with you, why are you ignoring me?

 _Jungwoo stared at Yukhei, a little on-edge._ I have schoolwork to do, remember? Unlike you, I want to get somewhere in life.

 _Yukhei snorted, seemingly amused._ You won't get far in life if there's no one left.

 _Jungwoo faltered, his mouth falling open._ You...you're still dead set on killing _every_ human?

 _Yukhei looked at Jungwoo like he had grown another head._ Duh, I want a world where ABs can exist peacefully. So we can be together without pain. Don't you want that?

 _Jungwoo sighed, lowering his gaze._ A world like that sounds amazing, Xuxi, but it won't happen. The world won't change, and you have to accept that. _Yukhei was angry, shooting a glare at Jungwoo. Sighing for the nth time that night, Jungwoo looked at the wounds on Yukhei's skin, blotchy and bruised._

Limitless kicked your ass, didn't he?

 _Silence, hesitation, then,_ Pfft, no, I fell.

 _Jungwoo snorted._ I was watching the news, and I saw Limitless literally throwing you through a building. I told you that you wouldn't be able to wipe him out, he's too powerful.

 _Yukhei frowned,_ What? Don't you think I can do it? _He pouted, and Jungwoo rolled his eyes._

No, I _know_ you can't do it. He's too powerful. You can only control metal, Xuxi, whereas he can control _anything_. You're at a major disadvantage. _Jungwoo explained sourly, crossing his arms._ Please don't fight him again. You'll just get hurt.

_Yukhei shrugged, and Jungwoo knew he wasn't going to listen._

 

* * *

 

**_Late May, 2031_ **

_"No! That's it Yukhei! I can't_ do _this anymore!" Jungwoo shouted, throwing his hands up in the air, tears pricking at his eyes. Yukhei stood in the doorway to his room, bloodied and bruised, eyes wide._

_"Do what? What do you mean?" Yukhei asked, his voice trembling. He stared at Jungwoo, tears streaming down his rounded cheeks. Immediately, Yukhei knew what Jungwoo was talking about. He shook his head, stumbling towards the slightly shorter male. He grabbed at Jungwoo's upper arms, shaking him. "No. No!" Yukhei shouted, his voice trembling. "No! You can't!"_

_Jungwo tore himself from Yukhei's vice grip, shoving the younger back. "I can! I've been doing this for almost eight months, Yukhei!" He shouted, his voice cracking at the end. "I can't do this anymore, knowing that you're killing innocent people, knowing the monster that you truly are, knowing about you and not doing anything to stop you!" Jungwoo sobbed, covering his face with his hands._

_"B-but—"_

_"No!" Jungwoo stared at Yukhei, his gaze hard. "We're done, Yukhei. I don't love you anymore. Just get out of my house, and don't come back. I don't ever want to see you again." His voice lowered with each word tumbling from his lips, his breath tight in his lungs._

_"You—I'm trying to create a better world for us! Humans are filth! They hurt us, Zeus!" Yukhei shouted back, anger flaring. Jungwoo stepped back, now scared._

_"This 'world' is for you, not for us. For_ you _! You don't care about me! You only care about yourself!" Jungwoo yelled, his breath uneven. "You get angry at me all the time, and I know what you're capable of! I've watched you kill someone before, and I'm scared you'll do the same to me!" He brokenly sobbed, backing up against the wall. He slid down it, burying his face in his knees._

_Yukhei just watched Jungwoo, his own tears streaming down his bloody cheeks. He stepped closer, reaching out to the crying male, opening his mouth to speak, "Jungwoo—"_

_"Don't fucking touch me, you monster!" Jungwoo screamed, curling in on himself._

_Yukhei froze, his heart stopping dead in his chest. When Jungwoo raised his head, Yukhei was gone._

 

* * *

 

**_Early June, 2031_ **

_"_ Magnito has finally been captured by the police. His identity has been revealed as fifteen-year-old Wong Yukhei. He will be sent to the nearest crime facility designed especially for rogue ABs for further punishment for his crimes. On other news— _"_

 _Jungwoo stopped listening. His parents stared at him, their forks dangling in their hands, mouths open wide. They were clearly shocked. The began to bombard him with questions, their voices raising with each syllable. Yelling things like "_ You dated this boy _?", "_ You knew he was an AB? _", "_ How could you let him into our house knowing he was Magnito? _", "_ He could have killed us! _", and "_ ABs are monsters, how could you not report him! _"_

_Jungwoo lost it, pushing his chair roughly and running from the table. He disappeared into his room, slamming the door shut. He buried himself into his bed and began to sob his heart out._

_He told Yukhei that Limitless was too strong. He told Yukhei that they'd catch him sooner or later. Now Yukhei was going to be experimented on and more than likely die._

 

* * *

 

**_June, 2031_ **

_The security guard in front of Yukhei twitched on the ground, the life quickly trickling from his electrocuted body. Yukhei just stared at the masked man before him, his eyes unbelievably wide. Yukhei was belted to a chair, dressed in white, wires and tubes sticking into his skin. He was sickly pale, his body thinner than before. The mystery man gazed at him with bright blue eyes, the wide brimmed black hat on his head hiding his hair._

_"Hello, Wong Yukhei. Or should I say, Magnito." The mystery man said, voice deep and muffled. Yukhei gazed at him in shock. "I've had my eye on you for a while, and it seems as though you and I have similar ideals."_

_Yukhei swallowed thickly, his mouth dry as a desert. "Wh-what?" He croaked out. "Who are you?"_

_The man removed his black studded mask, keeping it hooked behind his ears, revealing the lower half of his face. High cheekbones, slightly rounded cheeks, red lips. He smiled slightly, and it caused little dimples to indent into his cheeks._

_"My name isn't important just yet." He said softly. "What does matter, is that you want revenge on Limitless, yes?"_

_At the mention of the telekinetic AB's name, Yukhei stiffened, feeling anger coursing through his veins._ _The mysterious man clearly knew he hit a nerve, smirking devilishly as he fixed his mask over his lips._

_"I want Limitless dead." Yukhei growled._

_"As do I." The man walked behind Yukhei, and the younger could hear some keys clinking together before the belt became loose around his shoulders and chest. He shrugged his confines off, yanking the tubes and wires out of his body, wincing with each tug. The man stood in front of Yukhei again, holding a hand out for him. "I am Dianli. I am an electrokinetic. Will you be my partner?"_

_Yukhei didn't hesitate. "Yes." He took the AB's hand, shaking it._

 

* * *

 

**_two weeks ago_ **

_The day was going normal for Jungwoo at work. It was rather crowded in the grocery store, so he kept himself busy quite easily. Everything was how it should be._

_Until the front glass smashed and a lightpole rocketted through the aisles, knocking them over like dominoes. The humans around Jungwoo scream, and he felt his heart pick up it's pace. A long metal guard rail flew into the store, coiling itself tightly around Jungwoo's body, lifting him up and out of the store._

_It was Yukhei. Jungwoo began to cry, from the shock and pain._ Why are you here? _He thought, but he wasn't sure if Yukhei heard or ignored him, because the taller didn't respond, only lifting Jungwoo higher until they were face-to-face._

_Yukhei had his now-fixed mask on, so Jungwoo could not see his face. It scared him endlessly._

_"How could you fucking hurt me like this!" Yukhei screamed, the metal guard rail wrapped around the telepathic AB tightening painfully. Jungwoo cried out in pain, tears streaming down his face. He sobbed, squirming and crying in the excruciatingly tight hold of the ferrokinetic AB._

_"Please let me go!" Jungwoo wailed, his breath escaping his lungs in agonising wheezes. "Please stop it!"_

_Yukhei growled, using his powers to pick up a car and throw it. Jungwoo flinched as he heard the car hit the ground, people screaming in fear. Yukhei raised his head, looking where he threw the car. Jungwoo just knew a wicked grin had spread on the taller's face, and he felt like throwing up._

_Yukhei dropped Jungwoo roughly on the ground, walking past him towards where he had thrown the car. "Watch me destroy Limitless once and for all."_

 

* * *

 

**_a week ago_ **

Help, help me please! _Jungwoo screamed in his head, hoping, praying an AB was around to hear him. He was sobbing, not wanting to have anything to do with Yukhei or the police. But, then he heard an angel. A man yelling that someone was stealing the police car, sending the two officers into a panic and abandoning their assignment._

_Jungwoo felt a warm, soft hand grab at his own, gently guiding him to the back of the store. Then, he hugged Jungwoo. For this first time in months, someone hugged Jungwoo. His face was awkwardly pressed into the man's soft chest, his sweet scent calming. Jungwoo quickly calmed down from his panic, the man's bony fingers threading through his orange hair._

_The man looked so pretty, so kind. He said his name was Taeyong, and Jungwoo recognised him as one of his hyungs from school. He seemed a little adamant about Jungwoo, especially when Jungwoo explained why the police were after him and about his connection with Yukhei._

Hyung, you can trust me. _He said. Taeyong looked confused, but let Jungwoo continue on. When he broke down again, Taeyong gladly took the boy into his arms, soothing and calming him until he could breathe again. Then he told Jungwoo something that he certainly was not expecting._

 _"_ I'll make sure he'll be okay because I am Limitless. _"_

 _Jungwoo knew he was an AB, but he didn't know nor guess Taeyong could be_ the _Limitless. He was confused, then broke down again. Taeyong then told him he could stay with him, and the he promised he'd protect him._

_Jungwoo felt loved for the first time in a long time. He felt protected._

_However, meeting Taeyong's roommate Yuta for the first time wasn't fun at all. Yuta scared Jungwoo a little, getting extremely angry at Taeyong for letting Jungwo stay. But, Yuta quickly opened up to Jungwoo and the two became close._

_Over the week, Jungwoo slept in Yuta's bed while the two roommates slept together in Taeyong's bed. Jungwoo thought they were together, asking Taeyong if they were. Because it was telepathically, it freaked Taeyong out, but he responded nonetheless._

_He never really told Taeyong about his telepathy with ABs, and he wasn't sure why. Maybe it was fear or nerves, but he knew he had no reason to fear Taeyong or Yuta. They cared about him more than Yukhei ever did._

 

* * *

 

**_today_ **

Jungwoo knows Jaehyun was off. The way he stares at Taeyong is unsettling to say the least. He also knows Jaehyun is extremely jealous of how Yuta and Taeyong are cuddling with one another. He can see it in his eyes—the burning hatred he holds for Yuta glowing bright in his dim irises.

Jaehyun scares Jungwoo a little, and he knows for a fact he is an AB. He doesn't think the others know, and he knows the others don't know of Taeyong being an AB.

 _Do they know?_ Jungwoo asks, once again freaking Taeyong out. Jungwoo glances at Taeyong with wide eyes to be sure that Taeyong had heard him. Taeyong shakes his head in response, still clearly confused about his voice in his head.

Jungwoo once again looks at Jaehyun, frowning deeply. The thoughts racing through Jaehyun's head are not pleasant. Especially the ones about Taeyong.

He is freaking him out even more now. But, Jungwoo can hear Taeyong's thoughts and clearly, his feelings for the other are much more innocent than the thoughts from Jaehyun.

 _Huh, he has a small freckle on his cheek. That's cute._ Jungwoo feels bad for listening, but he's genuinely curious. Taeyong then looks to Yuta who's clinging to his arm.

 _Oh no,_ Jungwoo thinks to himself. He cam't read the minds of humans, but he knows Yuta harbours more than just friendly feelings towards the superhero. Glancing at Jaehyun, Jungwoo knows that he too, is jealous.

 _They're both jealous_. Jungwoo tells Taeyong. Taeyong looks at Jungwoo, clearly freaked out. Jungwoo runs a hand through his hair, quirking a small smile. _You look so freaked out._ His eyes widen, and Jungwoo raises a finger to his lips to silence him.

Then Hansol interrupts. They all banter for a bit, but when Ten opens his mouth after making out with Johnny for a millenia, the Thai male is completely spot-on with what Jaehyun wanted to do to Taeyong. Taeyong is obviously flustered, and Yuta is obviously unimpressed.

Jungwoo listens to them banter, staring at the ground, not really paying attention to the world around him. That is, until he hears a voice that makes his blood run cold as ice.

_Hey baby, did you miss me?_

It's Yukhei.

Jungwoo nudges Taeyong, and the older looks at him. "I feel a little nauseous, hyung, I'm just going to go to the bathroom." Taeyong tells him to text him if he feels any worse and he agrees with a small, sour smile.

He walks across the field into the main school building. He walks to the nearest bathroom and shuts the door, feeling ready to throw up.

"So, you didn't answer my question. Did you miss me?" Yukhei's large hands rest on Jungwoo's hips, the older not turning to look at him. "Oh, come on baby, look at me."

Jungwoo turns, raising a hand and slapping Yukhei across the face. He's dressed as Magnito, but his mask is absent. Yukhei stares in shock down at Jungwoo, pressing a hand to his reddened cheek.

"Wow, rude. I come all this way to see you and this is how you greet me?" Yukhei pouts, mocking hurt.

"Fuck off Yukhei." Jungwoo growls. He doesn't like swearing, but he's beyond angry. Yukhei bristles, gritting his teeth in anger.

"How many times have I told you to not call me that." Yukhei spits, shoving Jungwoo through the bathroom door. The weakened wood splintered as Jungwoo was pushed through it, landing on his back in a heap. The wind is knocked from Jungwoo's lungs, rolling onto his side in pain.

Yukhei exists the bathroom, now wearing his mask. Students begin to scream as Yukhei raises his hands in an upward motion, all the metal from the floors and walls tearing themselves from their foundations.

"You will pay for hurting me like you did. So will Limitless. So will _everyone_!" Yukhei slams the metal onto Jungwoo, and before he can scream, his head is hit hard and the world around him cuts to black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit this took forever. so much typing then deleting then re-typing then deleting again—so, I settled on a recap of luwoo. and yeah, y'all were right. jaehyun is indeed an AB. but, is he the one you all think he is? hm, I don't know, I like fucking with y'all. and also, once again, y'all were right about jungwoo being an AB. so, taeyong's powers are telekinesis, yukhei's are ferrokinesis, and jungwoo's are telepathy but only with ABs. 
> 
> so, the next chapter may not be published for a while because it will be long or at least have a lot going on in it. i'll try to update "might just die" and "ribbon" next, but I do have a good jaeyong one-shot planned (a sequel to "now or never" yeet) and a yusol or johnten one set in the same universe.
> 
> love, Kenny xx

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I’m back with a Jaeyong story...when I should be finishing or continuing my other stories. Whoops, my bad. I’m lazy... 
> 
> And I dunno how I came across this concept but it just happened? 
> 
> These are long ass notes...just please enjoy my story, okay? And let me know what you think in the comments! Feedback and love is always welcomed! ^^


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